Reviewed by Judy Richter
It has been in his family for 60
years, but the Polish American owner of the Superior Donuts shop in Chicago
isn't much of a businessman. In fact, he isn't much of anything at all other
than an aging hippie who has retreated into a life of hopelessness. That's
Arthur Przybyszewski (Howard Swain), who inherited the shop from his father. His life takes
an entirely new turn when an energetic, irrepressible young black man, Franco
Wicks (Lance Gardner), shows up one day looking for a job in Tracy Letts' "Superior Donuts," receiving its regional
premiere from TheatreWorks.
Earlier
that day Arthur had arrived only to find two neighborhood cops, James Bailey (Michael
J. Asberry) and
Randy Osteen (Julia Brothers), investigating a break-in and vandalism there. They
were summoned by Max Tarasov (Søren Oliver), the voluble Russian immigrant who owns the
adjoining video store. Max also wants to buy the doughnut shop, but Arthur
won't sell. As is typical of the two men, Max is more upset than Arthur. Arthur
also seems too dense to realize that Randy is romantically interested in him.
Although
the relationship between Arthur and Franco is prickly at first, it gradually
evolves into a form of friendship. The exchanges between the two are hilarious.
Along the way, Arthur delivers monologues to the audience, giving a lot of his
back story as a man who was born in 1950 and who fled to Canada to avoid the
draft during the war in Vietnam. We also learn about his failed marriage.
The
upshot is that Franco's enthusiasm allows Arthur to emerge from his shell. Some
nasty business that sees Franco falling victim to a bookie, Luther Flynn (Gabriel
Marin), and his
thuggish associate, Kevin Magee (Elias Escobedo), also leads Arthur to help
Franco restore his hope for the future.
Another
frequent visitor to the shop is Lady Boyle (Joan Mankin), a bag lady who alternates
between the bars and AA meetings. Max's backup in a confrontation between
Arthur and the bookie is his hulking nephew, Kiril Ivakin (Jon Deline).
Tom
Langguth's set
captures the feeling of a shop that's fraying around the edges as well as the
neighborhood with its El tracks right across the street and a nearby brick
apartment building. Jeff Mockus' sound design recreates the noise of passing El trains,
and Steven B. Mannshardt's lighting helps set the mood. B. Modern's costumes sharply define the
characters. Jonathan Rider is the fight choreographer.
"Superior
Donuts" has a far lighter tone than two other Letts plays -- "Killer
Joe" and
the Pulitzer Prize-winning "August: Osage County" -- seen in the Bay Area,
but it shares their sharp writing and character delineation. Director Leslie
Martinson and
her excellent cast do justice to the script, leading to a highly enjoyable
theatrical experience.
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