JOB: The Hip-Hop Musical

Word to your mother, don't miss an amazing creation based on the Biblical tale of Job. The story of a man whose faith is sorely tested by God gets an update so fresh and inventive that this truly marks the dawn of a new era in musical theatre.

Jerome Saibil and Eli Batalion are MC's Cain and Abel, rappers battling each other to come up wtih the cleverest rhymes. The show opens with a full-on rapping rant so tough to understand that it's printed in the program, but don't be afraid if you don't know your hip-hop, for the show soon opens into a wildly inventive mix of new music and old storytelling techniques.

Saibil and Batalion blaze through a set of numbers tied to the rhythms and rhymes of the street, yet energized by theatrical invention. The story is now set at a record label where Job Lowe (get it? Joe Blow?) faces corporate back- stabbing, and as the performers jump in and out of each other's characters (and up and down all over the stage) it's almost exhausting to keep up.

Make that exhilarating, for these amazing guys bust a gut to come up with ever- more-clever wordplay. I can't wait for the sequel, which premiered in Montreal and should be here next year.

- Peter Birnie