Men are dogs. And some of them literally are, if we are to believe Celia Montgomery and her delightful sense of comic rue. Her slight but penetrating look at male/female relationships, The Small Apartment, was recently given an outstanding production by Verde Inc., (Montgomery's own production company), and if sometimes her writing stops a few miles short of brilliance, she mercifully never goes over the top into the land of soapbox feminism either. The result is a funny, sometimes sharply observed look at the current state of relationships in this city, with a surprisingly fresh twist that gives the work an exhilarating, slightly off-kilter charm.
Alice and Drake are on a date ... or are they? Carla would never
hit on Alice's man ... or would she? Alice's dog Caesar has never
bitten anyone ... yet. This modern fairy tale follows a girl,
her dog, her date, and her downstairs neighbor, as they are challenged
by love, liquor, and square footage in a diminutive Manhattan
studio apartment. Maxwell Zener directed with a sure sense of
whimsical irony, always keeping the focus on the comedy but never
forgetting the darker undercurrents that fuel the action. Characterizations
were well-drawn, and the gifted four-member ensemble kept the
evening moving with their aggressive high spirits and pure animal
energy. As Drake, Alice's "date," Christian Johnstone
made affected behavior hilariously appealing; Montgomery herself
played Carla with a wonderfully wry sense of humor; and Kathryn
Savannah, as Alice, bounced daffy logic to dizzying heights
of delicious lunacy. In the most outlandish role, that of a mysterious
intruder who seems to know far too much about Alice, Joshua
Spafford nimbly balanced the character's more fantastic traits
with a humanity that gave the evening a soul it would have lacked
in lesser hands. And special mention must be made of the adorable
Henry Lifshey, whose sweetly confused cameo brought the
play to its bittersweet conclusion.
The set, by Chris Myers, was as realistic an evocation
of a dismal downtown Manhattan closet/studio as possible: for
once, the actual cramped proportions of an Off-Off-Broadway performance
space were used to the advantage of a script and its needs. Jyle
Nogee provided serviceable lighting, and the uncredited costumes
were just right.
Montgomery the writer shows promise - she has an interesting dark
side that comes out in unexpectedly funny ways, and as an actress,
she deserves a role on a sit-com. Perhaps, she and Savage, her
Verde Inc. partner, could be the Mary and Rhoda of the new millennium.
As it now stands, they, and Verde Inc., have the potential to
be a bright new voice on the Off-Off-Broadway scene if The
Small Apartment was any indication. Welcome.
Writing: 1
Directing: 2
Acting: 2
Set: 2
Costumes: 1
Lighting/Sound: 1
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Copyright 2000 Doug DeVita