Gregg Weiner, Todd Allen Durkin & Joe Kimble

By Tony Guzman
Critic at Large

Although perhaps best known as talented purveyors of edgy, experimental fare, Mad Cat Theatre Company has also established a welcome groove of presenting original plays cast in a more naturalistic mode, depicting believable characters facing their inner demons amidst the travails of contemporary life. Such an offering is Artful Dodgers by Artistic Director Paul Tei, a cleverly plotted, closely observed meditation on the various rationales and the prices paid for escapism as a means of coping with it all. Artful Dodgers depicts the woes and diversions of three pals: alcoholic guidance counselor Joe (and his long-suffering, estranged wife Beatrice), gambling addict photographer’s assistant Sebastian (and his long-suffering estranged girlfriend Gina), and sensitive car mechanic Bill, who spends way too much time and money in strip clubs (and is quixotically smitten with one particular exotic dancer, Lorna). Thrown in for good measure is Sebastian’s kid sister, Bonnie, a drug-addicted waitress.

The characters are compellingly drawn, the dialogue witty and credible, and the play’s various milieus, such as the race track, strip club and scenes of tormented relationship ultimatums and rapprochements, are rendered with the seasoned eye of an habitué. If the close parallelism of the subplots (pressures of life / escape via addiction of choice / possibility of salvation via “good relationship”) is slightly disconcerting for being rather too pat, Tei’s new script has the virtue of hewing forcefully close to its themes, while not being over-written: it’s character driven and the actors are left ample room to maneuver and flesh out their parts. This the Mad Cats do impressively, turning in another highly entertaining and satisfying ensemble performance.

Todd Allen Durkin gives us a charismatic and convincing Sebastian and he’s especially good with Ivonne Azurdia, whose Gina is a marvel of emotional veracity and subtle effects. Joe Kimble turns in another enjoyable, personable performance as too-hard-drinking Joe. Although he renders less of his character’s inner life than Durkin, he also works exceedingly well with Samara Siskind’s finely-nuanced, nicely underplayed Beatrice. Gregg Weiner’s comedic sense, command of the stage, and sure-handed delivery of a funny line enlivens looking-for-love-in-all-the-wrong-places Bill, and damn he’s good in a car scene with Lorena Diaz, the quiet believability of whose Lara is especially impressive for those who saw the over-the-top kitsch of her Mrs. Seizmagraff in Mad Cat’s recent Betty’s Summer Vacation. Young Claire Murray is affecting as Bonnie, nicely melding vulnerability and street smarts.

Always a fascinating acting troupe, Mad Cat is now transitioning to a company you actually follow for the acting, quite apart from its role as a presenter of new and/or out-there theatrical material for the adventurous of mind in these parts. What Mad Cat needs – and deserves – now is a bigger venue with more seats to fill, and more bucks in the coffers.