It has been rerun sort of season this year. We've already had Come From Away return to the Rep, and now here's another play the Lovely Bride and I saw at the Rep all the way back in 2003. The LB and I didn't really care much for it. Here's the review I posted at the time. And we STILL feel that way after the new production. The only difference is that I know more about plays now than I did then.
Topdog/Underdog is about two impoverished African-American brothers living together in a single room. Lincoln plays President Lincoln at an arcade where people pay to assassinate him (was this ever a thing?). He used to run 3-card monte but swore off it. Booth, his younger brother has no steady job, but gets by boosting stuff and dealing with his girlfriend. The two spend the two and a half hour runtime in their small apartment, squabbling and trying to exert dominance over each other. Lots of cursing. Lots of yelling. Lots of violence just bubbling beneath the surface. Stuff escalate to 11 regularly, then ratchets back half a notch, then cranks up again.
The characters are pretty irredeemable, in that you are just yearning for some Save the Cat moment, when they reveal they have heart and affection for each other and a glimmer of hope in their lives. No dice, here. Chekov's Gun checks in early, and hangs about for the duration, and the characters' moods flash back and forth erratically.
The characters are petty and venal, not even evil enough to merit our anger or pity. The actors, on the other hand, are really, really good, which they need to be to handle their personalities. You see flashes of humanity, understanding, and pathos before it all gets buried in one more escalating argument. I'd love to see ML Roberts and Yusef Seevers in something else, in part because they do not give up on their characters, and try to bring some nuance to them.
One thing that is better with this revival is the set. As opposed to a bare-ish stage with hints of the world around them, their apartment at Arts West is a cluttered mess that reflects their lives. There is even a curtain installed of a bleached American Flag, hung upside down. Not subtle, but then play isn't as well.
Back twenty-plus years ago, I asked the question "Pulitzer? This won a Pulitzer?" Yes it did, and a whole bunch of other awards as well. And the revival a few years back won more. This is definitely a case where my viewpoint does not line up with others who are experts on the craft. And to be honest, it was a full house that evening, the stage manager counting all the full seats before the performance. The side wings were filled with what seemed like high school seniors - maybe an English class? I'd love to sit on the post-play discussions about this one.
OK, enough belly-aching. It was a frustrating play that has not aged well with the passing years. The most positive thing I can say is that it shows glimmers of possibility for those involved. In the meantime, I'd recommend you check out Here There Are Blueberries at the Rep.
More later,
