Unusual Acts of Devotion
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Shelton, Thomas
Photo by Craig Schwartz
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By January Riddle
Leo and Nadine are a young couple celebrating their fifth wedding anniversary with some of their neighbors, on the roof of their Greenwich Village apartment building, in the steamy summertime. That is the context, but that is not what this play is about.
Unusual Acts of Devotion, Terrance McNally’s newest play enjoying its West Coast debut at the La Jolla Playhouse’s Mandel Weiss theatre, is about how people care for and about each other. Clever, lively, and absorbing, thanks to Trip Cullman’s light-handed direction, great tech, and a stellar cast, this is a hopeful slice of New York life about people who know each other, as only those who’ve shared a long history together can.
None of the five characters are blood relatives, but they comprise a family, nonetheless. Like most families, this one has its share of highs and lows, individually and collectively.
The lows belong to Josie, who is just home from a 6-month stay in a recovery program, and Chick, a gay man who is still grieving for his late partner. Once upon a time, Josie and Chick were an item, but Chick dumped Josie for Aaron, who became ill with HIV and ended his life by leaping off this same roof three years ago. And tonight, as guests of the happy couple, Chick and Josie get a chance to explore what they mean to each other and what they might become together.
Meanwhile, Leo and Nadine are “over the moon” in love, celebrating their marital bliss and looking forward to the birth of their first child. Leo has diabetes, although he pretends at times that he doesn’t. Keeping him from insulin shock is his devoted, sweet and charming wife, whose only failing is that she nags him too much about testing his blood sugar. Someone should tell Nadine (and the playwright) that diabetes self-testing has come a long way from the pricking of fingers and that insulin shots are not delivered in buttocks. Leo does have a nice bum, though, so it’s easy to overlook that flaw in the script. Leo himself is a keeper, for sure, a guy who knows who he is, accepts everyone else for whomever they think they are and loves his wife unabashedly.
Ah, but he has a secret. Chick knows Leo’s secret, and Leo knows that Chick has a secret, too. Josie knows Chick’s secret. Nadine would seem to be the only one without a secret and in the dark about all of the others’.
The literal dark is where Man lurks. The sixth persona in this play, he makes his entrance up the fire escape, quickly ascending to the top of the water tower, where he hangs out in the shadows throughout the party. Ostensibly he is the serial killer who is the object of the intrusive and noisy police helicopter searches that interrupt the conversations of the other unwitting folks, Man may not be what he seems.
Just ask Mrs. Darnell, the sardonic widow who knows even more than she lets on. This senior citizen lets on plenty, via her impromptu fortune-telling. Like an Our Town narrator with a New York edge, Mrs. D. illuminates and recalls, filling in gaps and eliciting memories that prompt the others to tell their own stories. It is Mrs. Darnell, in the end, who sheds light on the play’s, and life’s, real purpose.
Reminiscent of her character in “Everybody Loves Raymond,” Emmy Award winner Doris Roberts portrays Mrs. Darnell just so, with wit and wisdom, yet displaying her sensitive side like a slip showing just a tad beneath her skirt. Chick Hogan’s character is the most vexing, the fault of a script that makes some jarring emotional moves. Fortunately, Emmy Award winner Richard Thomas (John-Boy of “The Waltons”) manages both Chick’s conflicted nature and his discordant relationships so that they seem more frayed than irrational. Tony winner, Harriet Harris creates a totally believable Josie Shelton, taking a role to die for and celebrating it.
As the sweetly forgiving Nadine Choate, Maria Dizzia has the most difficult part, with little emotional or physical movement; but she makes it work so that Nadine is compassionate, but not pitiful. Joe Manganiello is a hunk, for sure, and his portrayal of the smooth and easy Leo Belraggio shows he doesn’t need to make macho with it. The dance scene with Chick and Leo is a highlight.
Poor Evan Powell, the UC San Diego MFA candidate who drew the short straw with the wordless role of Man. Not only does he say nothing, he hangs out in the shadows for the entire play, minus the last few minutes. He deserves kudos for endurance, and he makes the most of his tiny bit of action near the end.
Ben Stanton’s lighting design and John Gromada’s sound elevate this production, not only because it takes place on the spot-on realistic rooftop designed by Santo Loquasto. Helicopters, police searchlights, and an angel all appear with flawless veracity.
Everything cooks, and Unusual Acts of Devotion is a slice of life authentically served.
Unusual Acts of Devotion plays on the Mandell Weisss Theatre stage at La Jolla Playhouse through June 28.
Performances are 7:30 pm Tues, Weds: 8:00 pm Thu, Fri, Sat; 7:00 pm Sun. Matinees on Sat & Sun are at 2:00 pm.
Tickets are $30-$65
For reservations: 858-550-1010 or www.lajollaplayhouse.org
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