Dud On Arrival

From William Shakespeare to Tennessee Williams, from the inspiring dramatic genius of Tony Kushner to the purulent, pusillanimous incompetence of Jared Kushner, few tragedies occur without someone being the bearer of bad news. Sometimes that bad news comes from an employer, an officer of the law, a physician, or a journalist.


During the recent State of the Union address, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi's gesture toward President Donald Trump became the clap heard around the world. The Speaker's daughter, Christine Pelosi, sent out a tweet describing how watching her mother clap back at Trump brought back memories from her childhood. "Oh yes, that clap took me back to the teen years. She knows and she knows that you know. And frankly, she’s disappointed that you thought this would work. But here’s a clap. #youtriedit"

Two dramas now playing on local stages deliver a constant stream of bad news to their characters. Each runs about 90 minutes and delivers plenty of tart zingers. Each features a cast of conflicted characters with plenty to complain about. Unfortunately, neither play made a positive impression on me. Here's why.

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Custom Made Theatre is currently staging American Hero, Bess Wohl's 2014 dramedy set in "a toasted subs franchise somewhere in America." Working on a unit set designed by Heather Kenyon (with costumes by Erika Mae Martin, lighting by Brittany Mellerson, and sound design by Lynessa Flowers), the play's main characters are three "sandwich artists" struggling to survive in a bleak and hopeless minimum-wage landscape.

Devon DeGroot (Sheri), Laura Espino (Jamie), and
Paul Stout (Ted) in a scene from American Hero
(Photo by: Jay Yamada)

Sheri (Devon DeGroot) is a well-intentioned 18-year-old who might not be the smartest person in town, but is willing to think outside the box. Already holding down one job at a taco joint, she parties until 4:00 a.m. and sleeps in her car (a strong indication that she might be homeless). As the play begins, Sheri is being interviewed -- and is instantly hired -- by Bob, the nervous new owner of a fast food chain's franchise and a thickly-accented immigrant who, having worked as a dermatologist in his native country, carefully reads and takes everything printed in the franchisee's manual as the word of God.

Paul Stout (Ted) and Devon DeGroot (Sheri) in a
scene from American Hero (Photo by: Jay Yamada)

Jamie (Laura Espino) is as sarcastic and streetwise as Sheri is winsome and wholesome. A rebellious type with strong survival skills (as well as a master's degree in eye-rolling), she loves to play the subversive little flirt until reality reminds her that she can't afford to go to jail because she's a single mother with children waiting at home to be fed and cared for.

Paul Stout (Ted), Devon DeGroot (Sheri), and Laura
Espino (Jamie) in a scene from American Hero
(Photo by: Jay Yamada)

Ted (Paul Stout) is a former middle manager who lost his job at Bank of America during a downsizing (or, more likely, a corporate merger). A married man with a wife and two kids, he treats corporate bullshit as gospel. Ted thinks that trying to impress the clueless Bob will help him find a way back into the hallowed halls of management.

Paul Stout (Ted) and David Boyll (Gregory) in a
scene from American Hero (Photo by: Jay Yamada)

David Boyll appears in several small roles including:

• Bob, the immigrant franchise owner.
• An irate customer who returns to the sandwich shop complaining that what he bought doesn't taste like its description (in truth, he likes it very much and wants to find out how to make the same sandwich at home).
• A dream-like apparition of the eternally elusive prime rib sandwich listed on the menu which can never be made in the store.
• Gregory, the corporate hit man who arrives to inform the staff that the store is being shut down.

Devon DeGroot (Sheri) and Paul Stout (A Sandwich)
in a scene from American Hero (Photo by: Jay Yamada) 

It's hard for me to pin down exactly what went wrong with this production. On opening night, American Hero felt very much like a sassy 10-minute skit that the playwright tried to expand into a 90-minute play only to discover that its most impressive quality was its simmering insipidity. With the shining exception of Laura Espino (who had a firm grip on Jamie's character), the rest of the cast seemed uncomfortably clumsy. As directed by Allie Moss, this lackluster production felt like a collection of hard-hitting one liners had been left in a slow cooker overnight.

Performances of American Hero continue through April 6 at the Custom Made Theatre (click here for tickets).

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New Conservatory Theatre Center is currently mounting a production of Mark Gerrard's dramedy entitled Steve. A play about a gay man struggling with a mid-life crisis (that has absolutely nothing to do with AIDS), the protagonist, Steven (Greg Ayers), describes his tribe as "four middle-aged men and our occasional lady visitor, interested in the slightest recognition that we're still sexually desirable to the sexually desirable (or even to the almost sexually desirable) while secretly afraid that we're not, but bravely clinging to the illusion -- and each other -- like a jaunty gay raft of the Medusa."

The cast of Steve (Photo by: Lois Tema)

Let me translate this into simpler terms. Gerrard's script focuses on three Steves, two long-term same-sex relationships undergoing added stress, and one hunky Argentine dancer-waiter named Esteban who, despite working two jobs also finds time to volunteer in the pediatric oncology ward of a local hospital and flirt with the protagonist whose husband, Stephen (Jerry Alvarado), is an attorney with a steady job. Add in Stephen and Steven's eight-year-old brat, Zack (who has discovered the joy of stealing his stay-at-home father's smartphone), a sassy lesbian named Carrie who is dying of cancer, and a fitness trainer named Steve who never appears onstage but moves in with Steven's friend Matt (Daniel Redmond) and Matt's lover, Brian (ShawnJ West), to form a thruple.

Brian (ShawnJ West), Matt (Daniel Redmond), Stephen
(Joey Alvarado), and Steven (Greg Ayers) in a scene
from Steve (Photo by: Lois Tema) 

Two of these characters first met the protagonist when they were waiting tables at a "slop and sing" restaurant in Manhattan, which should offer some insight into why the self-absorbed drama queen is having a hissy fit as his friends attempt to celebrate his 47th birthday. While there are petty jealousies, hints of under-age sexting, some obvious relationship problems, and more than a few wounded egos, Gerrard's script is weighted down with so much of Steven's narcissistic whining and dining that one almost starts to feel as if Donald Trump isn't getting enough attention.

Esteban (Vaho) flirts with Matt (Daniel Redmond)
in a scene from Steve (Photo by: Lois Tema) 

The novelties Gerrard's script brings to the stage are (a) a reliance on frequent references to iconic moments from Broadway musicals (lots of Sondheim cues, more than a few gay in-jokes, and some vicious jabs at talents ranging from Lucille Ball to Kristin Chenoweth), and (b) a furiously complicated texting session between Steven the protagonist, Stephen the lawyer and their respective mothers as well as Brian, Matt, cancerous Carrie, and eight-year-old Zack (who remains firmly focused on ice cream).

Stephen (Joey Alvarado) and Steven (Greg Ayers)
in a scene from Steve (Photo by: Lois Tema) 

In 1968, Mart Crowley's drama, The Boys in the Band, placed a group of frustrated gay men at a birthday party which descended into a swamp of self loathing amidst a steady cascade of gay trivia referencing celebrities like Anna May Wong and Vera Hruba Ralston. After dining in a Chinese restaurant, many a person has complained about feeling hungry a half hour later. As I left New Conservatory Theatre Center after a performance of Steve, I realized that the problem with Gerrard's play was memorialized in a 2002 episode of South Park entitled "Simpsons Already Did It."

Last year, on a wall close to the building which houses New Conservatory Theatre Center, a billboard proudly hyped a bakery promoting its "artisanal white bread." While I have always enjoyed watching Greg Ayers onstage and admired much of Becca Wolff's stage direction in past productions, this was one evening when the magic just wasn't there for me. Performances of Steve continue through March 31 at the New Conservatory Theatre Center (click here for tickets).