“A Bright New Boise,” by Samuel D. Hunter, is the first offering of the Woolly Mammoth Theatre’s 2011-2012 season, one that Woolly Mammoth claims will explore the question: “Does our civilization have an expiration date?” That’s a lofty goal for a theater, or any institution, for that matter. Unfortunately, “A Bright New Boise” doesn’t ultimately analyze that question. More a collection of character studies of five people who are trapped in the same location than a well-constructed play, “Boise” takes place in two areas. The first is the break room of a big-box craft store, a wasteland of concrete block walls, fluorescent lighting and a huge television set that runs a continuous loop of invasive medical procedures. The second area is the store’s parking lot.
The two main characters are Will (Michael Russotto), a 43-year-old man who has just gotten a job in the store, and Alex (Joshua Morgan), a young man who writes poetry and creates performance art and just happens to be Will’s son. After a crisis related to a church he was involved with in another city and a scandal that involved the death of a young boy, Will has come to Boise looking for meaning and has sought out the son he never knew.
| Onstage |
| ‘A Bright New Boise’ |
| Where: Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company, 641 D St. NW |
| When: Through Nov. 6 |
| Info: $30 and up; 202-393-3939; woollymammoth.net |
But Will’s effort at reconciliation doesn’t happen as he planned, and the end of “Bright New Boise” grows murky and ends awkwardly. Hunter has said that he wanted to write about the meaning of religion to the less fortunate of the world. But “Boise” doesn’t achieve that. Instead, Hunter touches briefly on the Rapture, as he touches on Lutheranism or salvation through blogging.
The acting in “Boise” is first-rate. Russotto is touching as the bereft middle-age man who has lost touch with himself and his family. Morgan is equally taking as his son, who is too raw and feels too betrayed to trust anyone, even his own father.
Emily Townley is excellent as the foul-mouthed supervisor, whose god is the bottom line and who adores bullying people as much as she likes swearing. Another employee, Anna, is engagingly played as a shy bookworm by Kimberly Gilbert. Leroy, who advertises his contempt for the world by emblazoning swear words on his T-shirts, is portrayed with energy and appeal by Felipe Cabezas.
Director John Vreeke keeps the play moving evenly. Misha Kachman’s set succinctly describes the high desperation level in “Boise.” Its unrelieved functionality suggests why Will prefers the apocalypse to spending the rest of his days in this bleak wilderness.
