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Penetrator
By Anthony Neilson
Directed by Dan Krall
Produced by The Resonants
At Stage Left Theatre
3408 N. Sheffield.
Chicago, IL
Tickets are available at www.theatremania.com
Or by calling toll free, (886)811-4111
Thursdays thru Sundays at 7:30 pm
Running time is 70 minutes without intermission
Through September 28, 2008
Raw psychological drama a scary tale
The Resonants, a new theatre troupe founded by Dan Krall, Ian Daniel McLaren and Samuel Buti, all graduates of Loyola University Chicago, love “in-yer-face theatre.” Their initial production of Anthony Neilson’s 1993 drama “Penetrators,” unfolds as a raw, foulmouthed buddy play with extreme male bonding, latent homosexual tendencies and troubled intimacy issues. This short 70 minute one act is a riveting drama about the devastating effects of modern war on the soldiers who fight it.
We meet Max (Sam Buti), a twenty something unemployed slob who spends his days drinking beer and masturbating to porn. He laments the breakup of his girl friend. His roommate Alan (Daniel Planz) is Max’s opposite—neat clean and obsessed with his two teddy bears. The two play cards and drink beer in a bonding scene as we learn that Max can’t get over Laura and Alan avoids explaining why he doesn’t have a girlfriend.
When Tadge (Roger Bailey), Max’s grade school buddy and recent Iraqi war veteran, mysteriously arrives, we quickly realize that Tadge is a psychopath indicated by his wild eyes and paranoid behavior including blood on his army shirt. Max is determined to help his old buddy and Alan quickly grows afraid of Tadge who becomes more scary as he describes how the ‘penetrators’ stuck items up his ass in cruel attacks on him. These sexual encounters made Tadge escape the army. When Max shares the story of how Tadge got the name “Stiffy,” Tadge becomes increasingly agitated. The escalating paranoia leads to Tadge wielding an army knife as he attacks Alan in a demented rage. Max gets Tadge to stop his attack on Alan as Max refers to their grade school sexual exploration. The play has a strange twist before reverting to an earlier bonding between Max and Tadge. The dramatic tension explodes into violence.
This multilevel thematic drama emotionally depicts the effects of war and the emotional scares of repressed sexuality. Sam Buti and Roger Bailey gave winning performances. This is a worthy first production by The Resonants.
Recommended
Tom Williams
Tom99@chicagocritic.com for comments
Talk Theatre in Chicago podcast
Date Reviewed: August 29, 2008
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