Speed-the-Plow

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SPEED-THE-PLOW

Photo: Speed-the-Plow

Cititour.com Review
Fans who remember the original Broadway production of David Mamet’s “Speed-the-Plow” with its machine-gun rapid-fire rhythms from award-winners Joe Mantagna, Ron Silver and a painfully miscast Madonna, will surely find the latest revival with Jeremy Piven (HBO’s “Entourage”) Raul Esparza (Broadway’s “Company”) and Elisabeth Moss (AMC’s “Mad Men”) a breath of fresh air. This “Speed-the-Plow,” with expert direction from Neil Pepe, retains all of the grit of the original while allowing the brilliance of Mamet’s morality play to shine through with just the right amount of subtly.

Piven is Bobby Gould, a Hollywood studio exec, and Esparza is his long time pal and underling, Charlie Fox. When Charlie comes up with the “deal of a lifetime,” a big budget prison pic with the box office king, Doug Brown at the helm, the two hop around Gould’s office like two kids in a candy shop. They bob and weave, swear and literally jump for joy only to have an office temp, Karen played by Moss, burst the bubble of joy by convincing Gould that a literate film would be of more importance.
Piven is striking in his insecure bravado while Esparza is like a rat running around the treadmill having seen the exit door but unable to make the jump to salvation. He fights for his buddy to change his mind and make the film that he has in hand with the big deal looming. All the while, Moss, with the naivety of an outsider and the considered presence of one convinced of her own veracity, holds her own.

Scott Pask’s antiseptic office setting is nicely juxtaposed with Gould’s tasteful Hollywood house. Mamet’s language flows with humor and bite. The playwright never quite hides his disdain for, and the allure of, the film business with its vast wealth heaped upon those who sell out more often those that opt for artistic integrity. This production of “Speed-the-Plow,” at less than ninety-minutes long, is certainly performed with agility, if not velocity, but even at that it feels like you’ve weathered the storm and come out ahead of the game. “Speed-the-Plow” s more exciting than many plays twice as long.

By Lesley Alexander


Visit the Site
http://speedtheplowonbroadway.com

Cast
Jeremy Piven, Raul Esparza, Elisabeth Moss

Open/Close Dates
Opening 10/3/2008
Closing 2/22/2009

Box Office
(212) 239-6200

Theatre Info
Ethel Barrymore Theatre
234 West 47th Street
New York, NY 10036
Map



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