It's a bang-up concept. In a desperate attempt to secure a place in heaven, a man converts to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, leaving behind his Jewish upbringing while attempting to renounce his homosexuality. Sounds like pitch material for a comedy-filled one-man multimedia event. It's also Dustin Goltz' life story, which makes it more than a pitch. Goltz takes his audience with him on his journey, tracing the roots of his homosexuality, his belief in God, the persuasive arguments to join the Mormon church, his torment while searching for acceptance, and his ironically-located salvation when he finally comes to accept himself and God's plans for him. Goltz, an actor and performance artist, utilizes props, costumes, nudity, music, and video to turn The Paper Heart Gallery into a spectator-filled confessional. Banging the Bishop: Latter Day Prophecy has a highly comedic first act followed by a soul-searching second that reaffirms the fickle and inexplicable nature of God.
Goltz' humorous story is mostly universal. While there are many references to the homosexual subculture and the teachings of Mormonism and Judaism, there's little here that is too obscure. He weaves a picture of himself that is understandable and sympathetic. Even when he's at his lowest or doing his worst, the three-dimensional picture of his character allows the audience to understand his pain and appreciate his search.
This is the type of piece that has been flourishing for over two decades in the smaller clubs of New York, Chicago, and L.A. Confessionals such as this, culled from very familiar source material, is always in danger of becoming too self-indulgent, too precious to its author/performer. This piece has been extensively workshopped, and Director Jennifer Linde may also have helped Goltz to exorcize anything too obscure or unnecessary. His timing is impeccable, and it's obvious that he's rehearsed and rewritten this piece until it's second nature to him. There are still some moments that go on too long, such as the extended period of his heartbreaking time dealing with another person's self-destructive behavior. Ultimately, though there's never a moment that feels too personal for exposition, even as Goltz stands fully naked (though tastefully lit) before the audience, stripping away conflicting teachings.
There was a moment in the piece where the themes of homosexuality and Mormonism, mixed with a particular image Goltz uses in the end, strongly resonated with the work of Tony Kushner, but Goltz afterward assured me that this was unintentional.
While I advocate this type of theatre, and would definitely like to see more of this quality, I fear that this would become an invitation to the kind of personal theatre pieces practiced by Jack on Will and Grace. There's a fine line between theatrical exploration and whining. Dustin Goltz is nowhere near that line with Banging the Bishop, but it's not hard for the uninitiated to get from where he is to awful kvetching. Let's hope that anyone with half-a-mind to doing this type of theatre will use Goltz' offering as a blueprint.
Production Details:
Banging the Bishop: Latter Day Prophecy Written and Performed by Dustin Goltz
TheAter
N.umB
The Paper Heart Gallery, Phoenix (For a
map to location, click this
link)
Tickets: $10 at the door
For driving directions and parking information only, call Paper
Heart Gallery at (602) 262-2020
April 26th & 27th, May 4th & 5th, 2002