Cliché comedy, yet timeless

Men are all assholes. At least according to women, Kevin Burke said in his performance of "Defending the Caveman," the longest-running solo show in Broadway history, written by Rob Becker.\nPersonally, I have never had a woman say to me, "Andy, you know, all men are assholes." But Burke hit the nail on the head in one respect -- I've been compelled to defend my gender before.\n"Defending the Caveman" was an hour and 50 minutes of Burke, clad in a sports shirt and jeans, prancing around the large IU Auditorium stage. The props consisted of a "Flinstone's"-esque barcalounger and television set, two "cave paintings" of a woman, a man and buffalo, a spear and a laundry hamper. It was when Burke threw around some underwear from the hamper and sat in the easy chair that "the Caveman" came to him in a vision.\nSure, the comedy is cliché. Men are Neanderthals, able to concentrate on one thing at once: watching television, reading the newspaper, driving a car or having sex. But Burke's theory did make some sort of sense of it, that man's tendencies and woman's tendencies go back to caveman times.\n"Men are hunters, and women are gatherers," Burke said. "That's why when we were kids, boys had games like 'kill the guy with the ball,' and girls played things like 'house.' They also play with a jump rope, and they never tie anybody up!"\nThe audience ate it up. It was amusing to look around the house and see what sort of people were in attendance. It explained "Caveman's" longevity. There were elderly couples, middle-aged couples and college-aged couples. The only thing in common I noticed between them all is they were there in couples. Burke said it was a great date show, and boy was he right.\nThe show was excellently produced. The dramatic light cues were right on target with his mode of speech. When he talked about the Caveman appearing to him, he sat in his chair with a red spot flood bathing him and the chair on an otherwise dark stage. The pieces of furniture were realistic as well. (As realistic as a stone-carved chair and television could look.)\nLike the light cues, Burke's comedic timing was impeccable. He knew when to pause for the audience laughter and never once stumbled over a set up or a punchline. The man is a great physical comedian, and his domed-cranium impression of a bewildered caveman was priceless. It had audience members rolling in their seats.\nThe only real issue I had with it was the subject matter. Everyone knows there are fundamental differences between men and women. Sometimes I don't appreciate being likened to an early stage of male evolutionary history. I like to think I am a little more savvy around women than "Defending the Caveman" would tell me. The rest of the audience members obviously didn't agree with me. They were eating out of Burke's hand and then rolling out of their seats.\nIt must be timeless -- observations about leaving the toilet seat up are about as old as why the chicken crossed the road, but infinitely funnier. As long as there is a clear cultural difference between men and women, people like Burke will stay in business.