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The Bang and the Clatter … Sometimes in the Silence Theatre Company |
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Sean McConaha & Sean Derry – Co-Artistic / Managing Directors
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presents an Ohio Premier
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April 18 – May 10, 2008 |
 Michael May, Leighann Niles DeLorenzo and Doug Kusak |
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CAST OF CHARACTERS Man — Doug Kusak PRODUCTION STAFF Director – Fred Sternfeld
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 Doug Kusak |
| Excerpts from the News-Herald review by Bob Abelman“This is How it Goes” is a smart, tenacious, and cleverly staged production that is not to be missed.” ”it meets all expectations.”“With director Fred Sternfeld at the helm, this show is not only intriguing and thought-provoking; it is marvelously staged and has set the artistic standard for future BNC productions.” “Sternfeld is best known for taking moments that are intricate on paper and transforming them into vibrant and accessible scenes on stage. He nicely handles all that LaBute’s script throws at him, all the while keeping the audience from seeing what is coming around the next corner.” “Doug Kusak has created a thoroughly likable, charming and sympathetic character, which is essential in order for one layer of the storyline to implode to reveal the next layer. Thanks to Kusak’s keen performance, the moment you think you have this fellow and this play figured out, you’re wrong.” “Leighann Niles DeLorenzo is marvelous as Belinda, a damaged, vulnerable but still vivacious young woman who is stuck in a dissolving marriage.” “Michael May’s Cody is a brooding, intense, wonderfully portrayed counterpart to Kusak’s Man.” ”There is not a moment in this play when these characters fail to be authentic, engaging and interesting.” “The Bang and the Clatter is a welcome addition to the Cleveland theater landscape. It could not have opened on a better note.” view complete review |
 Leighann Niles DeLorenzo and Michael May |
| Winner of a ‘Times Newspaper Tribute Award – Outstanding Theatre 08’ Roy Berko, Times Theatre CriticActing – Douglas Kusak |
 Doug Kusak and Michael May |
 Leighann Niles DeLorenzo and Doug Kusak |
| Excerpts from The Cleveland Jewish News review by Fran Heller, contributing writer“hard-hitting play” ”Ably directed by Fred Sternfeld””It’s an impressive debut.” ”the naturalistic dialogue is both funny and savage.” “Under Sternfeld’s watchful direction, the three characters interact with each other like two male predators toying with their female victim. Whether conversing or silent, they continually communicate with their eyes and body language. Note, for example, Cody’s seething anger, Belinda’s visible fear and discomfort, and Man’s dissembling nature as he recounts a baldly racist incident on a plane. The action never lags in the two-hour, one-act play.” “The cast is first-rate. Michael May triumphs as the hostile Cody, a successful black man in a white-bread town. Alternately abusive and defensive, Cody remains paranoid about color. He elicits an equal amount of sympathy and repugnance as someone who uses his race as both protective armor and deadly weapon.” ”Doug Kusak is outstanding as Man, a charming jokester, which makes his blatant racism even more menacing. Man’s final monologue, using the chilling “N” word, made me shudder.” ”The waiflike Leighann Niles DeLorenzo is perfect as the needy Belinda, a “trophy wife” and unwitting pawn between a husband who no longer loves her and Man, who still does. Belinda’s monologue about why she married Cody is heartbreaking.” ”Sean Derry’s speckled black-and-white minimalist set makes its obvious point. All scene and costume changes take place in full view, reminding the audience that this is a play in which everything is controlled, including what you see and hear. For the jogging scene, the stagehand first sprays Cody with water to simulate sweat. It’s ingenious.” “The intimate three-quarter-in-the-round space serves the production extremely well.” ”As the newest theatrical kid on the block, The Bang and the Clatter Theatre Company begins its Cleveland residency with a loud and triumphant blast.” view complete review |
 Michael May, Leighann Niles DeLorenzo and Doug Kusak |
 Leighann Niles DeLorenzo and Michael May |
| Excerpts from the Times Newspaper review (Lorain County Times, Westlaker Times, Lakewood News Times, Olmsted-Fairview Times)by R oy Berko “the pacing is appropriate and there is little time for the mind to wander.” “The cast is excellent. Doug Kusak, who has a wonderful way of playing with words and the mobile face to amaze and amuse, is tremendous as Man, the high school acquaintance. The role was played by Ben Stiller in the New York production, and it is difficult to believe that he was any better than Kusak.” ”Michael May, who was outstanding in Dobama’s production of ‘TAKE ME OUT,’ again hits a homer as Cody, a man driven by early-life demons.” ”Leighann Niles DeLorenzo … is believable as Belinda.” ”Rachel Zake … highlights Cody’s insecurities as the Waitress.” ”a quality production” complete review here or on Roy Berko’s website |
 Leighann Niles DeLorenzo and Michael May |
 Doug Kusak,, Michael May and Leighann Niles DeLorenzo |
| Excerpts from The Cleveland Scene review by Christine Howey“The first play at this new venue, This Is How It Goes by Neil LaBute, is a perfect choice.” “Thanks to three winning performances and adept direction from Fred Sternfeld, this inaugural effort is well worth seeing.” “Belinda … a smart and compelling Leighann Niles DeLorenzo” “Cody, portrayed by Michael May in a well-modulated performance” “Doug Kusak, who gives Man a friendly, accessible demeanor” “This production wrings plenty of tension from the conversations among these three” “sparks lit along the way” complete review here or on the Cleveland Scene website |
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| ABOUT THE PLAY: In this follow-up to his acclaimed Fat Pig, award-winning playwright Neil La Bute goes for the jugular, pitting racial prejudice against desire in This Is How It Goes. Mixed-race couple Cody and Belinda live a charmed life, but Cody’s blackness stands out in their small midwestern town. When an old friend returns to town, his attraction to Belinda sparks jealousy, lies, and confusion.Belinda and Cody Phipps appear to be a typical midwestern couple: teenage sweethearts now married with children and a luxurious home. Typical except that Cody is in almost every respect an outsider – “rich and black and different,” in the words of Belinda, who finds herself attracted to a (white) former classmate. As the battle for her affections is waged, Belinda and Cody frankly question the foundation of their initial attraction, opening the door wide to a swath of bigotry, deception and betrayal. Staging his work on a continually shifting moral ground where nothing is sacred and the unexpected is a given, LaBute unblinkingly challenges the audience’s received notions of gender, ethnicity, and even love itself. Powerful, profane, and above all unpredictable. This Is How It Goes is a devastating exploration of the myriad ways in which the wild card of race is played by both black and white in America. “LaBute…continues to probe the fascinating dark side of individualism…his great gift is to live in and to chronicle that murky area of not-knowing, which mankind spends much of its waking life denying” – The New Yorker |
