What is it
Zach ? / Daddy Wolf by James Purdy
Chapel off
Chapel
Wed 29 Jan to Sat 8 Feb, 2003
Reviewer: Kate
Herbert
From the 1980's, Lindzee
Smith lived in New York and staged
short plays by James Purdy. What is it Zach? And
Daddy Wolf is a product of Smith's long love affair with Purdy's writing. This short play is a
collision of a short story and a play by Purdy. It is unstated which of the two
is the dramatic text.
However, we might
presume it is the dialogue between Zach, Lindzee Smith ) a war veteran, and his amateur
housekeeper-cook, Pete (Nicholas
Politis ). The combination of
the two produces a gritty, intimate, sometimes funny play.
Wilfred Last's portrayal of the hapless Benny, is a fine study in despair and survival of
the working class in New York.
His ruined face, skinny frame and
versatile voice creates a complete workld even though we see Benny only in a
phone box attached to a handset.
Smith and Politis
may not quite master the New York accents nor the detail in acting but they are
committed and interesting to watch. They relationship between cook and veteran is
dangerous, warm and compelling.
One exceptional
element in the show is the musician. Ashley Gaudion. His jazzy piano, sultry saxophone and chaotic soundscape are essential
to the impact.
Smith, who also
directed the play, keeps the pace smooth and the intersections slick between the
world of Benny and that of Zach and Pete.
Benny raves as he
waits for an operator-connected call in the heady streets of the Big Apple. Slowly
he unpeels his life for us. He worked in a
mitten factory. The holes in the linoleum in his apartment are home to a family
of rats. Ironically, his family left
him because of the rats - and the rising rate of venereal disease in the city.
Meanwhile, Pete, who
lied his way into the job as private cook for Zach, slaves cooking delicious,
inventive meals for Zach who abuses him. The status shifts
between the pair constantly until they finally reconcile.
These two threads of
narrative are a capsule of life in
New York and of the heightened emotion of deprivation, loneliness and loss.
By Kate Herbert
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