TRUE WEST

A Tale of Dualities

by Sam Shepard

Cadence Theatre in association with Onomatopoeia Productions at Firehouse Theatre on the Carol Piersol Stage

A Theater Review by Julinda D. Lewis

At: The Firehouse 1609 West Broad St., Richmond, RVA 23220

Performances: September 20 – October 5, 2024

Ticket Prices: $35-$40; Suggested for audiences 16+

Info: (804) 355-2001 or firehousetheatre.org or CadenceTheatre.org/True-West

Duality: duality refers to having two parts, often with opposite meanings, like the duality of good and evil. If there are two sides to a coin, metaphorically speaking, there’s a duality. War and peace. Love and hate. Up and down. Black and white

“Americans make movies; the French make films.”

We first encounter Lee and Austin engaged in a contentious discussion in their mother’s kitchen in her California home. The brothers have not seen one another in five years. Austin is house-sitting for their mother who is on vacation in Alaska. Their father is, apparently, living somewhere in the Mojave desert in dire straits. Austin, a screenwriter, is trying to work on a script – by candlelight – while Lee, a drifter who makes a living by nefarious means, sits on the counter drinking beers one after the other and interrupting Lee’s work. Nothing unusual about that. At first. But oh, it quickly becomes apparent that this sibling relationship is deeply, disturbingly dysfunctional.

“I come in through the window; I go out through the door.”

Landon Nagel and Stevie Rice alternate in the roles of the brothers, and on this Saturday afternoon Nagel wore the button down khaki role of Austin while Rice stepped into Lee’s scruffy black and white wingtips and battered trench coat. Both actors seemed to be in the exact right roles, so I’d love to have an opportunity to see this show again with the two in the opposite roles.

“Toast is kind of like salvation.”

Nagel and Rice both gave riveting performances to the sparse but attentive Saturday matinee audience in this iteration, with Rice’s character double-crossing his brother by pitching a story to his brother’s agent, effectively usurping his brother’s deal – along with his fragile self-esteem. While Act One is contentious, Act Two is nothing short of a dumpster fire (not the writing the situation), with the two brothers switching roles (not the roles they were cast in but their hierarchical roles, their roles in the family, their relationship to one another). The psychological wreckage echoes the physical wreckage of their mother’s pristine kitchen. And wouldn’t you know it – just when you think things have hit rock bottom, Mom returns unexpectedly. But her response to the emotional and material upheaval that greets her gives new meaning to the word dysfunctional.

On his website, Shepard says of  True West:

“I wanted to write a play about double nature, one that wouldn’t be symbolic or metaphorical or any of that stuff. I just wanted to give a taste of what it feels like to be two-sided. It’s a real thing, double nature. I think we’re split in a much more devastating way than psychology can ever reveal. It’s not so cute. Not some little thing we can get over. It’s something we’ve got to live with.”  

In the blink of an eye True West flips from the violent (e.g., Lee smashing a typewriter with a golf club or a vicious fight between the two brothers involving a garroting) to the humorous (e.g., a tale of lost teeth or an award-worthy drunken ramble involving toast – lots and lots of toast). The normalcy of the serene kitchen with its white cupboards and abundance of plants (keep your eye on the plants!) and the reassuringly normal ambient sounds of chirping crickets and barking dogs amplify the outrageousness of the brothers’ interactions, of their very relationship.  

True West is a dark comedy, and so much more, The seemingly simple title is a commentary on the wild west, the American dream, and a reality check on what is real and what is mere illusion. Even though Austin and Lee are exaggerated, they are real people with real issues; they are authentic in their dysfunction.  

Supporting roles were capably filled by Otto Konrad as the disingenuous agent, Saul and Jane Petkofsky as the elusive Mom – but this is basically a two-hander, and both Nagel and Rice shine in their respective roles.   Rusty Wilson’s direction keeps things moving so that I was startled when intermission arrived and appropriately stunned at the ending. There’s truly no way to prepare, just hang onto the edge of your seats and go along for a truly wild ride.  

NOTE: A 2020 production of True West by Cadence was postponed due to COVID. For historical reference you can find Susan Haubenstock’s review of a 2009 production of True West by Henley Street Theatre in the Richmond Times Dispatch archives: https://richmond.com/entertainment/true-west-brings-genuine-delight/article_a3b4fe56-799b-53cc-8aa9-70e7e39307e2.html . See this Style Weekly article for the backstory of director Rusty Wilson’s involvement with True West: https://www.styleweekly.com/tag/true-west/

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Julinda D. Lewis is a dancer, teacher, and writer who was born in Brooklyn, NY and now lives in Eastern Henrico County. When not writing about theater, she teaches dance history at VCU and low impact dance fitness classes to seasoned movers like herself, and occasionally performs. Her most recent (ad)venture was the premiere of a solo work, The Waters of Babylon or Psalm 137 Revisited: a Post-Exodus Reflection in Movement Choreographed From Collective Memories for the debut of the Critical Race Theatre Project, right here at RTP in August 2024.

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TRUE WEST

by Sam Shepard

Directed by Rusty Wilson

This performance is dedicated in memory of Carol Piersol, the beloved Founding Artistic Director of Firehouse

CAST

Austin/Lee     …………………….               Landon Nagel

Austin/Lee     …………………….               Stevie Rice

Saul                …………………….               Otto Konrad

Mom               …………………….               Jane Petkofsky

PRODUCTION TEAM

Direction                               ……….           Rusty Wilson

Scenic Design                       ……….           Joseph Lavigne

Costume Design                  ……….           Sarah Grady

Production State Manager ……….           Sharon Gregory

Sound Design                      ……….           Grace Brown LaBelle

Lighting Design                   ……….           Andrew Bonniwell

Fight Choreography           ……….           Aaron Orensky

Composer                             ……….           Drew Perkins

Properties Design                ……….           Emily Vial

Photo Credits                       ……….           Jason Collins Photography

RUN TIME

1 hour 45 minutes; there is one intermission

PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE

Opening Night – Friday, September 20 at 7:30PM

Running Fridays and Saturdays, September 20, 21, 27, 28, October 4, 5, at 7:30PM;

Thursday, October 3, 7:30PM; Saturdays and Sundays, September 21, 22,  28, 29, & October 5 at 2:00PM.

TICKETS

$35 – $40