Reviewed 3/18/05
Theatre in the valley may finally be maturing, but it has a long way to go. Some alternative theatres are gaining a small amount of acceptance, as evidenced by the excellent attendance at Nearly Naked Theatre’s current production of Les Liaisons Dangereuses, but other companies are undeservedly sputtering. The cabaret is an absentee entry and late night productions are few and far between. A healthy theatre community offers many opportunities, and future theatergoers are the young people who want to avoid the stuffy and seek out the cutting edge. NNT recognizes this, and along with Stray Cat and a few others, is trying to mine the possibilities. Their current after hours production is a remounting of one of their original hits, David Mamet’s 70s infused Sexual Perversity in Chicago.
In many ways, it’s a perfect piece for this venue: foulmouthed,
intellectually stimulating, and brimming with sex and mind games. They’ve
replaced the original director with hot-handed April Smith and three of the
cast members (perpetually employed Cale Epps as inept Dan,
ASU alum Heather
Harper as innocent Deborah, and Kerry McCue, a
holdover from their current Mainstage production of Les Liaisons as
jaded Joan), although the hilarious Tim Shawver reprises his role of alpha-male
Bernie. With added period furnishings on
the base of T. John Weltzien and Gregory Jaye’s four-zoned Les
Liaisons set and use of Nykol DeDreu’s lighting plot with what seems to be only
one addition, it’s a cost-effective way to score a little cash for
a company and bring in those who prefer their theatre after a few drinks.
Smith has paced this show at disco inferno speeds. She has required a rapid-fire delivery of her actors in most every scene, and while that’s a great thematic choice, it steamrolls over some of the complexity of Mamet’s subtle relationship machinations. The laugh lines are there, but sometimes they’re zipping past. This speedy repartee also threatens to flatten out the actors’ characters. For Shawver, it is a great choice, enhancing his Ratso Rizzo interpretation of Bernie that is the antithesis of most actors’ choice for the role. Epps and Harper are able to modulate this a bit for crucial scenes, but their setups are nearly lost in the quick drive-by. The biggest victim of this double-shifting is McCue’s Joan, who is flattened into a ball-busting man-hater rather than a victim of her own crushed dreams. Such great moments as her opening line become races against the clock rather than reflections of razor-sharp humor.
Despite this racing and flattening, there is a lot to love about this offering. The dynamic between each of the boys and each of the girls is engaging. The intimate moment of revelation and gratification between Epps and Harper is uncomfortably effective. Irony may zip by, but those who follow closely can observe most every parry and thrust.
Criticism aside, please, please, please, I beg all of you, attend after hours theatre productions. I eagerly rushed from Desert Foothills and Moon over Buffalo to get to this because I knew that for all of its problems, I would still rather feast on depth instead of once again sniggering at the obvious. This kind of show is the perfect richly dark dessert to follow the usual fare of comfort food.
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