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Local all-star orchestra plays songs from "Kids in the Hall" for SF Sketchfest

Veteran bandleader Marc Capelle brings his Red Room Orchestra to the Great American Music Hall Tuesday to play songs from the influential sketch comedy show "The Kids in the Hall" with members of the troupe for the SF Sketchfest.

Capelle still occasionally sets backsides in motion as the leader of local all-star R&B revue Marc & the Casuals, in recent years the busy keyboard/trumpet player has focused his attention on another far more ambitious project: the Red Room Orchestra. The ensemble was initially formed to pay tribute to the music featured in "Twin Peaks," the surreal '90s television show by iconic director David Lynch that saw a revival with "Twin Peaks: The Return" on Showtime in 2019.

Roy Orbison - In dreams - from the movie Blue Velvet by A M on YouTube

Lynch's unique cinematic creations have always put music in the spotlight, from the singing Lady in the Radiator from the director's 1977 debut Eraserhead and the bizarre visage of Dean Stockwell lip synching to the Roy Orbison hit "In Dreams" in his Oscar-nominated breakthrough Blue Velvet through his use of both '50s and modern rock in Wild at Heart and Lost Highway during the '90s. Lynch made music a cornerstone of "Twin Peaks" and its 1992 cinematic prequel Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me, collaborating with his longtime composer Angelo Badalamenti on original songs like the hit "Mysteries of Love" sung by Julee Cruise -- who would release a full album of Lynch/Badalamenti tunes and appeared in both the series and film. Sadly, both Cruise and Badalamenti passed away in 2022. The film world is still gripped with grief after the beloved director died on January 15 following a long battle with emphysema at age 78.

RED ROOM ORCHESTRA - "Twin Peaks Theme/Laura Palmer's Theme" (Angelo Badalamenti covers) 7/28/17 by gridlifeTV on YouTube

In the summer of 2017 after an initial more stripped-down performance in the Chapel bar with a smaller ensemble, Capelle gathered a high-powered group of San Francisco musicians including Dirty Ghosts guitarist Allyson Baker, Persephone's Bees guitarist Tom Ayers, drummer Todd Roper (Chuck Prophet, Cake), percussionist Larry Mullins (aka Toby Dammit, who has played with Iggy Pop, the Residents, Swans and Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds), singer Karina Denike (Dancehall Crashers, NOFX, the Cottontails), violinist/vocalist Dina Maccabee and saxophonist Tom Griesser (New Morty Show, Brass Monkey, the Cottontails) to play the music of "Twin Peaks" and more Lynch-related offerings at the music venue, taking the stage with an expanded group that was christened the Red Room Orchestra in front of a packed house for a transporting night of atmospheric music.

The positive reception of that show would lead the group to partner with SF Sketchfest in 2018 for the first time to perform soundtrack-related music at the Chapel. The first night -- scheduled to coincide with a tribute to "Twin Peaks" featuring cast members from the original show held at the Castro earlier in the day -- featured onstage appearances by many actors from the series including Sherilyn Fenn -- who helped judge an Audrey Horne dance contest -- and actual song performances by "Twin Peaks: The Return" star and local product Chrysta Bell (who brought down the house with her rendition of the Jimmy Scott song "Sycamore Trees" from the original series), James Marshall and Ray Wise, who stepped into his Leland Palmer character to sing "Mairzy Doats."

Red Room Orchestra: Music from Twin Peaks by Symphony Space on YouTube

Since then, the group has presented additional nights of music paying tribute to the creative musical curation of director Wes Anderson -- playing the songs used for his films RushmoreThe Royal Tenenbaums and more with a variety of special guests -- the soundtrack to the Cohen Brothers' cult favorite The Big Lebowski and the music from Paul Thomas Anderson's breakout film, the '70s porn industry period piece Boogie Nights. For the 20th anniversary edition of SF Sketchfest, the ensemble paid tribute to the iconic punk film Repo Man with a bracing evening of hardcore classics that included appearances by director Alex Cox as well as major soundtrack contributor Tito Larriva and Circle Jerks bassist and cast member Zander Schloss. Last year, the group celebrated two films with tribute nights to the 1987 comedy cult classic vampire flick The Lost Boys (complete with an appearance by guest saxophonist Tim Cappello, who performed a show-stopping cover of the Call's "I Still Believe") and the 1971 Hal Ashby comedy Harold and Maude in addition to a special evening of music and scene readings with Special Agent Dale Cooper himself, Kyle McLachlan.

The lost boys - I still believe scene by j mcG on YouTube

While this year's SF Sketchfest was the first in years not to feature one of the group's soundtrack or "Twin Peaks" tributes -- though the festival is partnering with Noise Pop to bring the RRO back to the Great American on Feb. 19 to celebrate the life of David Lynch to perform songs from the director's work; the show will serve as a benefit for "Twin Peaks" actor Carel Struycken ("The Giant" in the series) who lost his home in the Eaton Fire -- the group is instead playing a special show Tuesday spotlighting the music of legendary Canadian sketch comedy show "The Kids in the Hall."  

Formed in 1984 when the established Toronto comedy duo of Dave Foley and Kevin McDonald -- who were already working under the Kids in the Hall moniker -- decided to team with relocated Calgary sketch pair Mark McKinney and Bruce McCulloch. The following year, fifth member Scott Thompson was invited to join as the group became an established force in the Toronto sketch comedy community.

Kids In the Hall: We broke up by roark57 on YouTube

While the group would split up for a short time when McKinney and McCulloch were invited by "Saturday Night Live" creator and producer Lorne Michaels to write for the show in New York City, when they reunited in Toronto, it was Michaels who would be instrumental in moving the troupe from the live stage to the television screen. After the airing of a one-hour pilot special in 1988, the quintet delivered their surreal, anarchic sketches to a growing audience for the Canadian Broadcast Corporation as well as HBO and CBS in the States from 1989 to 1995. The Kids in the Hall would become the Monty Python of Generation X, introducing such indelible characters as Thompson's Buddy Cole -- an outspoken bon vivant who was openly gay like Thompson himself  -- and McKinney's Mr. Tyzik ("I'm CRUSHING your head!!") and the Chicken Lady. 

The Daves I Know by javiehe09 on YouTube

The troupe made the movie Brain Candy in 1996, a fraught creative process as tensions between the members grew before an extended hiatus, but the film would eventually become a cult favorite. The group came to even greater fame when Comedy Central started airing the show in syndication years after it ended, expanding their fan base. The Kids in the Hall reunited in 2000 for a North American tour to capitalize on their renewed popularity. The group has since staged multiple touring productions, become a regular marquee attraction at comedy festivals like the SF Sketchfest and created shows including the 2008 miniseries "Death Comes to Town" and the eight-episode revival season of "The Kids in the Hall" for Amazon Prime. 

While RRO guitarist Allyson Baker has regularly collaborated onstage with members of "The Kids in the Hall" during past SF Sketchfests, this show on Tuesday marks the first time the full Red Room Orchestra will be involved. The group backs McCulloch (who has released two albums of comedic music), McDonald and Thompson on a variety of tunes and music-focused sketches including such fan favorites as "The Daves I Know," "Terriers," Rod Torfulson's Armada Featuring Herman Menderchuck and the songs of McCulloch's angst-ridden teen character, Bobby. San Francisco club institution DJ Omar (Popscene, Leisure) plays records prior to the show.

SF Sketchfest: The Music of "The Kids in the Hall" with Bruce McCulloch, Kevin McDonald, Scott Thompson and the Red Room Orchestra
Tuesday, Jan. 28, 7 p.m. $45
Great American Music Hall

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