Thank you, Ron Hunting and Algonquin Theatre Company. Any troupe that takes risks is all right with me. Of course, risky can have its drawbacks. Their current venture, the three one-act plays that comprise Death Defying Acts is the kind of theatre that would ordinarily never be seen in the Valley. For one of the one-acts, that would have been a shame; for one, it would have been kinda sad; and for the third, well, one-and-a-half out of three ain't bad.
Acclaimed writers David Mamet, Elaine May, and Woody Allen have each contributed a one-act with one thing in common: death is a central situation. In Mamet's An Interview, a lawyer pleads his case in Hell. In May's Hotline, a depressed woman calls a Suicide Prevention Center. In Allen's Central Park West, the revealing of philandering has disastrous results. The strongest of these pieces, Hotline is a very interesting character study with some great comedic touches. Central Park West is a vitriolic, ascorbic, and generally unpleasant piece that still has some of Allen's trademark hilarious lines. An Interview is a one-joke curtain-opener that proves that even the best writers sometimes cannot avoid self-parody.
Mr. Hunting has directed Interview and Central Park West, while Robyn Allen has helmed Hotline. Each has done good jobs with casting and pacing. They have worked with their scripts well. Much of the problem with the evening is textual, and not their or their performers fault.
Simply put, Interview sucks, and Mr. Hunting has done what he can with Thom Morrison and Howard Golub's mastery of "Mamet-meter." Both seem a little ill-at-ease, but it can't be blamed on them. Mamet's stab at "lawyer-speak" only compounds the difficulty of the presentation. Shakespeare did a similar slam on lawyers four centuries ago which was shorter and much more worthwhile.
Hotline is the reason to see this evening. Highlighted by three wonderful performances, this study of an unsuccessful prostitute and the untested hotline worker who must talk to her finds a way to create its humor not by undercutting its characters, but by expanding on them. Scott Campbell's young hotline worker Ken is enthusiastically played, and Martha Brooks' lonely and abrasive Dorothy is the best performance of the evening. Mr. Campbell commands his anxious role, while Ms. Brooks explores the vast range of emotions like a virtuoso, moving from anger to self-loathing effortlessly. In his dual roles of lead psychologist and delivery man, Mr. Golub is funny. As one of Ken's associates, Tiffany Price is unconvincing, and has an unidentifiable accent.
It's unfortunate that Woody Allen has made it impossible to separate his personal travails with young women and his art, but Central Park West reads like his film Husbands and Wives in miniature. There are some great lines, but they are undercut with the brutality of the infighting. How nasty does it get? One woman says of the other "She'd fuck a snake if someone held the head." On discussing one man's impotence, the comment is tossed "It's like sticking an oyster in a parking meter." Ouch and yuck. Erin Curry and Ms. Brooks are the wives of two couples that are facing an impending divorce and the infidelity that has brought it on. Steve Scally and Mr. Morrison are the philanderer and the cuckold. Ms. Price is the young girl at the center. Ms. Brooks portrays her flighty character well, and though Ms. Curry doesn't play drunk very well, she gets better throughout the course of the scene. Mr. Scally is strong, but Mr. Morrison seems uncomfortable in his wimpy role. Ms. Price is better and more believable in this scene than the other.
Mr. Hunting's set design is ingenious, and Mr. Campbell's lighting effective. A. Woolcott's costumes are good.
You'll never see these shows here in Phoenix again. They're given a good production, and are well directed. Okay, so the scripts have their problems. It's still important to support this group that obviously loves theatre, even if some of their current offering misses the mark.
Production Details:
Death Defying Acts (Three one-act plays)
The Interview by David Mamet
Hotline by Elaine May
Central Park West by Woody Allen
The Algonquin Theatre Company
The COMPAS Black Box at Theater Works, Peoria (For a map to location, click this
link)
(623) 815-7930
February 9th - 25th, 2001