I come from cheap theater; I don’t look down my nose at young companies on a budget. But I hate it when ensembles ignore their limitations or fall back on implausibility to end a story. Such is the case with Brikenbrak’s latest.
Jacob (Paul Cosca) is an unsatisfied teacher with an unhappy home life who’s drafted to helm a poetry club. He meets Sarah (Kacy Smith), a poetry maven who is too old for her age and too vulnerable for the world. Their relationship deepens, no surprise there. But when Sarah is murdered, we are left with questions that the piece strains to answer.
Playwright Cosca has a great ear for dialogue and initially establishes realistic conflicts, but the narrative degenerates as he struggles to wrap things up. The piece’s staging is clumsy; the players spend too much time shifting walls and furniture. Brikenbrak folks, look at your decisions again. The poorest theaters can be rich in vision. (Lisa Buscani)
“Wolf,” at the Brikenbrak Theatre Project, 1770 West Berteau, (312)806-3506. Through September 17.
