Austin (left), played by Bryan Henderson, learns that his screenplay was dropped by Sol (right), a Hollywood producer played by Ben Martin, for Lee’s (Joe Von Appen) unwritten script.
If you have ever wondered how much damage a 5-iron can do to a typewriter, you cannot miss the Pocket Playhouse show this week. There is more destruction in this show than in any other production I have seen in my campus career. But this play offers much more than a display of the basic male desire to beat things.
Sam Shepard’s “True West” tells a story of two brothers: one a screenwriter, the other a wandering thief. Austin, the writer, has just started house sitting for his mother at her home outside Los Angeles. His brother, Lee, comes out of the desert, where he has been living for some time and, like the brash, abusive friend that we all have known, invites himself to stay as well.
Austin is in the process of writing a screenplay for a Hollywood producer, Sol, when Lee starts talking about a story he has to tell. It is a “real western, based on real life events.” The idea catches the ear of the producer, and his decision to produce both screenplays creates the conflict for the remainder of the show.
Sol is only on stage for some 10 minutes out of the hour-and-a-half running time of the play. Elizabeth Flesh also plays a small part, coming in for the last scene, but this is basically a two-man show. Bryan Henderson gives a wonderfully comedic performance as Austin, providing much more for the role than the timid submission seen in the first few scenes. Joe Von Appen plays the boisterous Lee with great intensity. Von Appen really does become the aggressive, overbearing brother. The audience will cringe with empathy when it sees the way he treats Austin. However, the high level at which Von Appen has to operate does become uncomfortable at times — if nothing else, because his yelling gets old.
The show itself covers large emotional ground, bouncing between the comedic and dramatic, but it leaves the audience unsure about the nature of the play. This could be seen as a fault, but it shouldn’t be. Shepard plays with the idea of reality in scenes where Austin and Lee discuss what is real enough to be put in a screenplay. Lee says he knows what is real because he has been living an extreme life. Austin says he knows what is real because he drives on the freeway and shops at Safeway.
The conclusion is that life is full of absurd stories that are totally true but wouldn’t sound real if you heard them. This is one of those stories, but condensed into a play. We see characters change roles and say lines that were coming out of other mouths in a very circular way.
But not all the credit goes to the actors. Student director Clayton Carter has created a wonderful environment for this play to take place. Pocket plays are notorious for nondescript sets, but Carter breaks the norm by putting everything, including the kitchen sink, out on the stage. In the kitchen that is the set, he has done everything humanly possible to make it look like a real kitchen. Then there is the whole typewriter-smashing thing, which is just great for kicks. Although it would be nice if I could say that these material things don’t matter, they make a big difference in making the play seem more professional. Carter’s devotion to the physical appearance of the show reflects his dedication to the quality of the actual performance.
In a term with as many Pocket shows as this winter’s, there will always be some that you can miss. This is not one of them.
“True West” runs Feb. 22, 23 and 24 at 5 p.m. at the Pocket Playhouse in Villard Hall. There is a $1 suggested donation.
