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| Jack Francis and Frankie Marchi photo by Laura Durant |
Click here for more information on this production that runs through December 2nd.
"Douglas Carter Beane's The Little Dog Laughed is a biting satire and a cynical study on our celebrity-fixated culture. While Nearly Naked Theatre's production may not entirely have the requisite bite the play requires, it features some good performances and amounts to an interesting expose of how the struggle for independence can get sidetracked by the fight for power.
Mitchell is a Hollywood based actor who is on the verge of making it big. His only problem? As Diane, his piranha of an agent, puts it, he "suffers from a slight recurring case of homosexuality." When Mitchell starts to have feelings for rent boy Alex, who claims to be straight with a girlfriend named Ellen, Diane goes into overdrive to handle the potential damage Mitchell's decision could bring, as she's afraid the resulting circumstances could jeopardize her film project that is to star Mitchell. Beane's play is both funny and sweet but also a tad bit tart and glib, though there are plenty of cleverly written dialogue and situations that don't always go where you think they will...Director Damon Dering does a pretty good job of ensuring the comical moments land without detracting from the more serious scenes which he instills with a sweet, emotional resonance. Though his direction has an appropriate light touch, the pacing in a few parts was somewhat off during the performance I attended, with some of the funnier moments too rushed and some of the serious dialogue too slowly delivered. ...Frankie Marchi is quite good as rent boy Alex. When Alex discovers that he returns Mitchell's feelings, the way Marchi projects the confusion that leads to clarity is beautifully portrayed. Nathalie Cadieux' Diane is devious, cunning, power hungry, and a perfectly coifed and highly stylized agent....Jack Francis slightly downplays Mitchell, the man who realizes he doesn't want any bullshit in his life...As Ellen, Avery Volk doesn't overplay this woman who is completely aware that her boyfriend sleeps with men for money but is jealous when she realizes that she may be losing him to Mitchell....The Little Dog Laughed may not be a great comedy, but it is an interesting story about people who are just trying to have it all and be true to themselves but suffer the ramifications those decisions bring.. " -Gil Benbrook, Talkin' Broadway (click here to read the complete review)
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