The Safety Net
Reviewed By Michael Lazan
"The Safety Net." Presented by Broken Watch Theatre Company, casting by Stephanie Klapper, at the Michael Weller Theatre, 311 W. 43rd St., NYC, Sept. 22-Oct 2.
From the look and feel of this professional, lucid, well-calibrated production, one would have to say that Broken Watch Theatre Company is ironically named.
Unlike many young companies that pick plays from the overrated or underwritten bins, Broken Watch has had the good sense to find a smart, fresh work by Christopher Kyle, who has been writing screenplays since his fine play "The Monogamist" was produced by Playwrights Horizons about a decade ago.
Like "The Monogamist," this is the sort of "well-made play" that can be underappreciated. A meditation on guilt, the story concerns a 30-something named David who blames himself when his adoptive brother, Gene, winds up dead in his hometown of Indianapolis. A successful lawyer in New York, David lives and bickers with his attractive, neurotic, and sadly infertile wife, Sonya. After the demise of Gene, David searches for himself and his past, traveling home to reconnect with his high school classmate Rick and especially his late brother's pregnant girlfriend, Lashonda.
Kyle delights in teasing the audience, keeping us wondering about the true motivation behind David's interest in Lashonda. Director Martha Banta does a superb job of interpreting the script, accentuating the melancholy while also leaving room for humor. Jason Pugatch drives the play expertly as David. Eva Kaminsky is a sassy and surreal Sonya. Mark Setlock is consistently hilarious as Rick. And as Lashonda, Tinashe Kajese is stunning, stealing nearly every one of her scenes with an easy manner and an uncanny feel for street patois.
Wrapping this theatrical gift is J. Wiese's simple but gorgeous set, a series of dark panels with geometric designs that somehow capture the depressive intellect of the writer.