A Play Is a Poem
Reviewed by Terry Morgan
Center Theatre Group (in association with Atlantic Theater Company)
Through October 13
Ethan Coen is one of the greatest screenwriters of the past 50 years, with some of his works — Miller’s Crossing, Fargo and The Big Lebowski — standing as masterworks of the form. He’s also an accomplished short story author and poet, as attested to by Gates of Eden and The Drunken Driver Has the Right of Way, respectively. So, it’s disappointing to report that his new show at the Taper, A Play Is a Poem, is at best a mildly amusing collection of four short plays, with an implacably bad, tough-to-endure one-act positioned right at the center.
In “The Redeemers,” two ne’er-do-well siblings are trying to dispose of a dead body when their cop brother knocks at the door. “A Tough Case” follows detective Ed (Joey Slotnick) as he investigates an embezzling case, assisted by his accident-prone fellow P.I., Don (CJ Wilson). “At the Gazebo” focuses on a pivotal conversation between Carter (Sam Vartholomenos), just returned from Europe for the first time, and Dorothy (Micaela Diamond), who’s never left Natchez. In “The Urbanes,” a cabbie (Max Casella) and his wife (Miriam Silverman) argue about starting a new taxi business. And finally, “Inside Talk” follows a series of film pitches from wannabe producers Lou (Jason Kravits) and Jerry (Saul Rubinek) to an increasingly aggravated executive (Peter Jacobson).
Slotnick is credible as the standard film noir detective Ed, but he’s considerably livelier as the Cabbie’s duplicitous prospective business partner, Joey. Wilson excels both as Gary, a violent “Christian” cop and as the cheerfully idiotic Don. Vartholomenos and Diamond do the best they can as Carter and Dorothy, but their play is so baroque in its tedium that they can’t bring it to life. However, Diamond does do sharp work as the sassy Lindy in “Tough Case.”
Casella and Silverman are both funny as the eternally feuding Cabbie and Wife, and Ro Boddie lends great support as twitchy and enthusiastic fellow taxi driver, Steve. Jacobson does a nice slow burn as the Executive who puts up with one progressively more stupid film idea after another and finally erupts in rage. Rubinek scores as the comparatively reasonable (if still manipulative) Jerry, and Kravits is terrific as the aggressive Lou, who prefaces all his attacks “with respect.” Finally, Nellie McKay, who performs songs between each play, is easily the best aspect of the production: Her lyrics are witty, her voice is lovely, and her musicianship is superb.
Director Neil Pepe gets solid performances from his cast, but his staging is somewhat tepid. “At the Gazebo” is particularly problematic; punctuated by the sighs of flagging audience members, it soon slows to a crawl. Coen is undeniably a very talented writer, and several of these pieces display his wit (“You were born with a stick up your ass. Life has not worked it free.”). However, the shorter segments feel more like fragments than plays; they end abruptly or don’t have much point. “At the Gazebo” attempts to be a high-minded character study; instead it’s a stultifyingly endless barrage of stilted verbiage that goes nowhere.
Without it, A Play Is a Poem would be moderately entertaining. There’s some funny writing, good actors and the wonderful presence of Nellie McKay. But having that dead spot in the middle of the show makes it difficult to sit through.
The Mark Taper Forum, 135 N. Grand Ave., Downtown L.A.—Civic Center; Tues.-Fri., 8 p.m.; Sat., 2:30 p.m. & 8 p.m.; Sun., 1 p.m. & 6:30 p.m.; through Oct. 13. www.CenterTheatreGroup.org. Running time: approximately one hour and 50 minutes, with no intermission.
