Pint Lizards Present ‘The Breakfast Club’

The Venn diagram that best describes the Pint Lizards performance group is equally overlapping circles of acting, drinking, and nostalgia. In practice, that translates to performing popular movie scripts for a pub audience. What began as a pandemic project for head lizard Richard Croy and his theater-folk friends has turned into a continuing series of readings in local watering holes, treating audiences to live renditions of their favorite classic films. 

“We love movies; we love drinking,” says Mark Johnson. “Could we make performing a reading of a beloved movie into a drinking game?” Absolutely! Think an actor deserves a tip? Drop a dollar in the pint glass in front of them and they’ll respond with a “bottoms up!” on their beer.

The Pint Lizards began their readings with Beetlejuice in 2021 and have performed a script a season since then. “As starving theater people,” says Karen Baltzley, “we wanted to find a way to perform in Santa Barbara without paying an arm and a leg to use a space. We proposed to our favorite bar to let us perform something on their slowest night … now we’re two years in!” The upcoming show, John Hughes’s The Breakfast Club, will be performed at 7 p.m. on Sunday, August 27, at Blue Owl downtown (which offers a vegan-friendly menu, beverages including wine and beer, and a full calendar of live events).

These readings are not demure performances by pretentious actors — it’s more akin to a cover band of all your friends playing your favorite songs. “I think the draw is nostalgia,” says Rich Lashua. “We’re taking stuff that already has a place in pop culture, and … bringing it to life for an hour or two. Free admission! Grab a beverage or a meal, and if you like it, we’re always welcoming suggestions for the next round. We might do your favorite next!”

The Blue Owl, 5 W. Canon Perdido St., theblueowlsb.com