Bathroom Attendant.

"The Bathroom Attendant" at Theater 124 Bank Street is for the most part an enjoyable play. The play is written by Tom Kelly and directed by Andrew Block. The two hour play takes place on the seedy side of town just outside Las Vegas, Nevada. 

 Johnny (Dan Patrick Brady) is a former Golden Gloves Boxer who has a penchant for gambling, hookers and fast money schemes. The person who he is closest to is Tina (Kate Miller) who is probably the best directed of all the characters. She is able to act her role with real authority and believability. 

 The first act moves well because the story unfolds nicely. The dialogue between Johnny and Tina as well as Connor (Evan Klein) is when the play is at its best. Connor has seen something atrocious and he relies on his fathers old family friend from the Brooklyn days to help him execute a plan that will expose a celebrity in the baseball community. 

The second act is a little more far fetched but the story remains interesting regardless. Actors Jon Krupp and Mari Blake as Bambi have larger roles in act two. Blake was very good in "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance". Here, however, her and Jon Krupp as Marcus never really are that believable, nor are they very effective to the plot.In Krupp, he is never too believable in his role; he never strikes us as a tough guy. Blake too seems discombobulated as a young prostitute who wants revenge.

 This play could have been sensational if the second act was as strong as the first. Instead, Kelly brings trafficking, the presidents false rape charges into the play. This useless rhetoric does nothing for this play that has down-trot ten people dealing with everyday life and barely getting by. Even though Tina, a former porn star, wants to help young women like Bambi, the long trafficking speeches are superfluous and time consuming for the audience.

The direction is inconsistent during this two hour play. At times the blocking seems to be a problem. At times the actors are very good, at other times the actors seem lost in their movements. This falls directly on the blocking. Both Miller and Brady who have vast theater experience at times seem like they are forcing the plot along. 

 In a play of this genre both Sound and lighting are extremely important. Tony Lepore does a deft job in the sound and design. The play is at its best when the lighting which brilliantly backstops the play as well as locks in the mood. The play too in sound brings the emotional tone to the forefront. When the play is clicking and the action picks up, Lepore is brilliant with the sound. In the design as well, we see just how deflated these people are residing in this beaten up place where the lowest of the low come to live. 

 The Bathroom Attendant" is a play that during the two hours is both excellent and really slipshod. If Kelly is able to shake out the plots weakness and put into it more meaningful writing, this show can be a real hit.

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Broadway season is almost upon us. I am glad that Matt Ross lost CSC as press. He is such a weak press person. I am hoping that in the near future he loses NYTW as well as the Irish Rep.

The first show on the docket to open is: "Dessert Other Cities". Previews begin on September 29. The much anticipated "A Few Good Men on October 8th". This season is shaping up to be a hopeful good one.

Jack Nicholson, New York City, Broadway, Hollywood, Galileo, Dolly Parton, Sophie Cunningham, Catlin Clark, WNBA, Iran, Hormuz Straits, AWAKE AND SING, The Fantastiks.