Theater Review—

Brookfield Offers A Good Exercise In Theater

By Julie Stern

BROOKFIELD — Nicky Silver’s The Food Chain is an adult comedy whose title embraces a host of implications and references. The emphasis is basically on the word “chain,” since the play is a variant on the French theme of La Ronde: that is, the first act focuses on Amanda’s love for her missing newlywed husband, Ford. In the second act, Serge – a Calvin Klein underwear model – is fending off the attentions of Otto, because he is waiting for his new lover – Ford – to return. By the third act, Amanda, Ford, Serge and Otto all have to figure out where they fit in the scheme of things.

At the same time, food is a dominant theme. Amanda’s insecurity stems from having been fat as a teenager, shunned and ridiculed by the popular kids. Otto is a neurotic eater, bundled into a fat suit and gobbling incessantly from the shopping bags filled with “snacks” he carries around with him. His hunger is an attempt to fill the void left by his mother’s continued putdowns and rejections.

Brookfield Theater for the Arts is currently presenting this Tony Award-winner and first-time director Denise Fitzsimmons does a fine job managing her cast. She also keeps the dementedly self-absorbed monologues and wacky confrontations moving at the snappy pace required for this play to work. Ms Fitzsimmons gets deft performances from her players.

Diane Gallo is Amanda, who talks compulsively for the entire first act, punctuated by the vapid interruptions of Bea, the person on the other end of a hotline Amanda has turned to in desperation.

Augie Pires is the smug, gum-chewing, beautifully built but silly Serge, and Gary Millar at Otto alternates between begging shamelessly and eating more than seems humanly possible.

Debra Johnson is brash, opinionated and dense as Bea, who feels the hotline exists for her own emotional benefit rather than for the welfare of the lonely souls who call in the night. And Matt Austin is enigmatic and silent as Ford, who is caught between all these fountains of verbiage.

The Food Chain is certainly different from run-of-the-mill theater, and Brookfield Theater for the Arts is giving it a good workout.

(Performances continue for two more weekends, until September 25, with performances Friday and Saturday evenings at 8 pm. Tickets are $10.

The theater is on Route 25 in Brookfield Center, behind the library; call 775-0023. Note that this play contains strong language and sexual content. It is not for children.)