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American Buffalo
By David Mamet
Directed by Michael Menendian
At the East Stage of the Raven Theatre Complex
6157 N. Clark Street
Chicago, IL
Call 773-338-2177, tickets $25
Fridays & Saturdays at 8 PM
Sundays at 3 PM
Running time is 1 hour, 50 minutes with intermission
Through January, 2007
Don: “Well Bob, I'm sorry, but this isn't good enough. If you want to do business. . .if we got a business deal it isn't good enough. I want you to remember this”.
Bobby:” I do”
Don: “Yeah, now. . .but later, what? (Pause.) Just one thing, Bob. Action counts. (Pause.) Action talks and bullshit walk.“
Don to Bobby: “There's business and there's friendship, Bobby. There are many things, and when you walk around you hear a lot of things, and what you got to do is keep clear who your friends are, and who treated you like what, or else the rest is garbage, because things are not always what they seem to be”
Mamet classic grabs you and never let’s go
Raven Theatre has the chutzpah to tackle the toughest shows that most theatre companies stay far away from. Their “American Experience” theme leads them to David Mamet’s 1975 breakthrough work, American Buffalo. If you are going to mount American Buffalo, you’d best gather three exceptional players all of whom must be fearless actors. Director Michael Menendian has a keen eye for casting and it shows with his selection of Richard Cotovsky as Donny, Seth Remington as Bobby and Brian McCaskill as Teach. Each delivered courageous work as they landed one of the finest threesome seen on any Chicago stage in years! This stunning work shakes up audiences every time its performed.
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The story takes place in Chicago in Donny’s (Richard Cotovsky) junk shop in a rundown neighborhood. Michael Menendian’s terrific, cluttered set contains so much junk that it could be inspired by a junkman’s dream! Donny sold an American Buffalo nickel coin to a local collector. He plans, with Bobby’s (Seth Remington) help, to burglarize the collector’s apartment on the assumption that he may have a handsome coin collection.
When Teach (Brian McCaskill) flies into the junk shop emitting a manic rage-filled monologue, the three petty hoodlums begin their quest for the crime that never actually happens. American Buffalo is a raw, naturalistic work that aptly depicts street jargon, expletives and dim-witted circular logic that only the inept possess. Mamet’s word play is masterful especially in the exchanges between Teach and Don as they plan the burglary. These scenes are darkly funny. We see Teach emerge as the wound-too-tight ex-con whose philosophizing and paranoid rants get him to justify his loser status. Brian McCaskill and Richard Cotovsky are brilliant as they play Mamet’s word games with his quick, stinging rhythms. Seth Remington plays the young recovering junkie with an ignorant innocence and a compelling intensity.
As the play builds, we realize that these three crooks aren’t capable of mounting the heist. The essence of the play is in the talking about the heist not in the actual doing of the deed. We see Teach glowing from anticipation as his plan wins Donny’s approval. His frustration boils over when Teach finally concludes that Bobby has screwed up his plan making the heist unrealistic. He vents his frustration with a scary, destructive rage that leaves Donny’s store in total disarray. The violent scenes that find Bobby getting beat up by Teach are not for the squeamish or faint of heart. Mamet’s foul street language still carries a wallop.
American Buffalo is a tour de force for the talented three players who are so real that they reminded me of the thugs that hung out in my old Belmont and Central Chicago neighborhood in the 1970’s. The real scary thing is that there are still many Teach’s, Bobby’s and Donny’s out there.
American Buffalo is a major triumph for Raven Theatre. Don’t miss this timeless classic. You’ll witness three great performances.
Highly Recommended
Tom Williams
Tom99@chicagocritic.com for comments
Talk Theatre in Chicago podcast
Date Reviewed: October 8, 2006
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