July 1, 2005
THEATER BEAT
The word "promising" has a double edge when applied to a
new talent: It means that we foresee great things in an artist that we can see
only dimly in their work so far. That's precisely the case with writer-director
Anthony Q. Farrell's amiable new anthology play, "Room," which offers
some fresh, offhanded spins on comic cliches before sputtering into a jokey
collective shrug.
Farrell starts strong with a case of prehistoric class envy: An
industrious caveman (Eric Hailey) has created the "first room,"
leading his neighbor (Matt Braunger) to fixate on the things he could get away
with in such privacy.
Braunger returns to great effect in the next bit, as a man prone
to scathing outbursts when he's off his meds. A later scene features the
utterly winning Heather Klinke as a flinty biddy in a nightgown, left in
heaven's waiting room to make small talk and sample a cheese plate. And
unflappable team player Hailey memorably gets jiggy in little more than a fig
leaf and angel's wings.
Farrell's cast couldn't be better or subtler. If he punched up two
of his less distinguished sketchesÑa sex chat room scam, a "Jerry
Springer" scrimmageÑand scrapped the endearing but distracting mime antics
of Mark Teich, Farrell's "Room" would be much more inviting.
"Room," the Met Theatre, 1089 N. Oxford Ave., Los Angeles. 8 p.m. Tuesdays to Wednesdays. Ends July 27. $10. (323) 957-1152. Running time: 1 hour, 30 minutes.