Reviewed
by Judy Richter
Lee Sankowich isn't leaving quietly with his last staging as artistic director of Marin Theatre Company. Sankowich, who is resigning after 16 seasons with the respected company, directs the in-your-face Tracy Letts' "Killer Joe," a comedy-drama filled with nudity, sex, violence and lots to think about. The contemporary work, set in a rundown trailer park on the outskirts of Dallas, focuses on a family that could exemplify the term "trailer trash."
Chris
Smith (Ryan Montgomery), 22, is a small-time drug dealer who needs several thousand dollars
to make good on a deal gone bad. There's no way that his father, Ansel (Howard
Swain), an auto
mechanic, and stepmother, Sharla (Stacy Ross), a waitress, can come up with
the money. However, Chris has a scheme: He wants to hire a rogue Dallas cop,
Joe Cooper (Cully Fredricksen), to kill his mother so that the rest of the family can
collect on her life insurance. Joe, known as Killer Joe, usually is paid in
advance, but he agrees to accept a retainer, Ansel's daughter, Dottie (Anna
Bullard), a
sweet 20-year-old with the emotional and intellectual capacity of a
12-year-old. The other family members agree, so Joe moves in with them, sharing
Dottie's room and bed. When the insurance scheme fails, Joe exacts violent
retribution.
No
one in the family is very bright or sophisticated. When he's not at work, Ansel
spends most of his time sprawled on the sofa in his filthy, torn underwear
watching TV. Sharla's idea of a good dinner is a bucket of Kentucky Fried
Chicken, and she doesn't think twice about answering the door in the middle of
the night wearing nothing but a dirty T-shirt that leaves her bare from the
waist down. Chris has vague hopes for the future and seems to care about
Dottie, but his background and limited education hold him back. "There's
nothing worse than regret," he says.
Each
actor creates a well realized character, but Bullard as Dottie and Fredricksen
as Joe are especially noteworthy. Bullard walks timidly, tentatively and often
maintains a vacant look except when Dottie asks a question that shows she knows
more than one might think. The tall, slender Fredricksen gives Joe an air of
assurance and menace that keep him in control. The scene in which he gently but
firmly seduces Dottie is fraught with tension and sensuality. He always treats
her kindly, but he shows no mercy to the others after their plan goes awry. He's
particularly cruel to Sharla in one graphic scene that led several audience
members to walk out, and the violence that follows is exceedingly bloody.
Inspired
by film noir, Sankowich and his design team -- Giulio Cesare Perrone, sets; Laura Hazlett, costumes; and Michael
Palumbo,
lighting -- stage the play entirely in black, white and grays, except for the
blood. Even the KFC bucket and the beer bottles have black, gray and white
labels. Norman Kern's sound and music complement the approach.
"Killer
Joe" has reportedly generated a lot of controversy, and one could
certainly take issue with the nudity and violence, yet the play and its
characters also generate a lot of thought and discussion. It's a bold choice.
For More Information
Return to Home Page