By James V. Ruocco
The electrified outdoor space depicted in Robert O'Hara's "Barbeque" isn't exactly "gatdam normal." Nor are any of the characters who populate the playwright's wise-cracking, addictive, hilariously paced comedic dramatization.
"You probably don't even remember waking up this morning with all them damn pills you poppin."
"I was the one who told you not to be eating no damn corn out no damn can. It's them damn canned goods that give you that damn cancer. They put that damn cancer in all these damn canned goods."
"We might as well draw three gatdamn circles on this gatdamn cement floor, pitch a tent and hand out tickets because when ZIPPITY BOOM rolls up into this heah park, it's gonna be the Greatest Show on muthafuckin Earth."
"This crazy fool chopped his own mama's head off cuz she refused to give him her last damn cigarette."
With the groundwork laid, "Barbeque" is thrust into motion with tangy ambition, stand-up comedy mode, fierce lampooning, ruthless vision and razor-sharp insight, which, in turn, gives it just the right amount of bound-and-gagged kick, raucous clash and multilayered artifice.
In sync with the mind-blowing excitement of "She Kills Monsters" and the landmark relevance of "Days of Absence," "Barbeque" is yet theatrical coup for Hole in the Wall Theater and its continued commitment to present works of substance, scope, variety, fantasy and importance.
Hypnotic.
Surprising.
Framed.
Mirrored.
Complex.
"Barbeque" is an engaging experience with a catchy narrative, a plethora of colorful characters, a brisk perspective and a plucky terrain and blueprint that befits its freewheeling concept, cycle and adventurous evolution.
As scripted by O'Hara, "Barbeque" showcases the quirks, conversations and mood swings of the O'Mallery's, two parallel families (one white; one black) who have gathered together in the same area of a public park on the same day to perform an intervention on their methamphetamine, alcohol-addicted sister prior to sending her off to rehab in Alaska for three months.
Both sets of characters not only have the same names, but their whacked-out behavior, attitude, language and plan of attack is truthful, defiant, lively and chock full of obvious similarities as "Barbeque" dictates which group to showcase from scene to scene without any abrupt halts in the action, the story arcs, the plot twists, the arguments, the exchanges and the ongoing conversations of the two James T's, the two Lillie Anne's, the two Marie's, the two Adlean's and the two Barbara's.
This being a Robert O'Hara play, "Barbeque" addresses everything from poverty and addiction to social status and race along with candid remarks about prejudice, sibling rivalry, ignorance, injustice and black vs. white lineage. It also comes packaged with lots and lots of questions before the big reveal - a twisty surprise of sorts - is dropped at the end of Act 1.
What is real? What is imagined?
Is this fact? Is this fiction?
Are these characters actors? Or are they real people in real, everyday situations?
Why do the five black characters have the same first and last names as the five white characters?
Is O'Hara staging a play? Is O'Hara staging a movie?
Why are certain elements of the story fabricated in one scene, but grounded in reality in the one scene that is played out before it?
What, pray tell, is really going on?
The richness of O' Hara's mind games, sloshing, plotting and verbal acidity is played out with targeted freshness and zippity boom by director Teresa Langston who amps up the heat, throws caution to the wind and flame broils fact vs. fiction with funny, recurring and insightful authenticity. Well aware of the playwright's skills, darkness and deception, she dials up the hilarity with apt, well-timed and resourceful appropriation. Yes, she knows the big reveal. Yes, she knows what's real and what isn't. Yes, she knows how the play will end. But as interpreter and storyteller, she never lets on or gives anything away without O'Hara's consent. Instead, she helms a solid portrait of familial dysfunction that keeps you guessing and guessing in between the trashy talk, the four-letter words, the bitching and the bickering, the nasty insults and the cruel jibes aimed and tossed freely into the faces of all ten characters.
Then, all of a sudden, it's showtime for Langston, the company and the audience.
The bomb drops, the plot changes, the characters get spooked or unraveled and "Barbeque" moves forward in an entirely new direction you never once saw coming. You sit back thinking, "What the fuck just happened?" But with Langston at the helm fueling the production with the new ideas, concepts and tricks of the trade, as dictated by the playwright, you willingly go along for the ride. How it all ends is anybody's guess.
As "Barbeque" evolves and continues, Langston smartly captures all the angst, satire, rage, ruthlessness and silliness of O'Hara's playscript through well-positioned staging, movements and blocking techniques that complement the play's excitement, charm, edge and curiosity. Here, as in "A Number," which Langston staged earlier this year at Hole in the Wall for Backyard Theater Ensemble, she paints an honest, immersive theatrical experience that is grounded, gripping and always alert. The mix of energies onstage adds to the overall excitement as does her embracement of the HITW theatrical space, its design team and its one-on one connection between actor and audience.
Want something that's both fun and different?
You find that here.
"Barbeque" stars Jamie Reopell and Drew John Ladd as James T, Nicole Roy and Marie Altenor as Barbara, Kirsten Easton-Hazzaa and Grace Clark as Marie, Lisa Bynes and Elizabeth Reynolds as Lillie Anne and Melissa Rostkoski and Jacqueline Davis as Adlean.
Well chosen for their individual roles, all ten performers bring impeccable comic timing, thrust and craziness to their characterizations which they showcase with palpable chemistry, uplift and demand. Everyone also gets his or her moment to shine (so, to speak) in the spotlight with standout passages, dialogue and one-liners that are played to the hilt and delivered with in-your-face accuracy, definition and style.
Dressed alike, they also follow O'Hara's playful dramaturgical switch from white character to black character and back again with brilliant comedic timing, style and line delivery that hilariously reflects the lower middle-class background of their upbringing, education, career choices and fucked up/I don't care attitude when the going gets rough. For plot purposes, both groups are also featured in additional scenes (no spoilers, please) that add heightened velocity to the story and its big, red-carpeted finale
An impressive piece of theatre that deals with some pretty heavy themes and situations, "Barbeque" is a gripping, fast-paced production that demands to be seen. It is funny. It is timely. It is offbeat. It is enjoyable. It is confidant. It is assured.
It also is delivered with the authoritative, remarkable gravitas that once again, places Hole in the Wall Theater at the very top of its game.
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