STW’s `Loot’ Makes An Interesting Opener

By June S. April

STAMFORD – What with issues of police brutality in news headlines, it is somewhat ironic that Stamford TheatreWorks selected Loot, a satiric comedy by Joe Orton, to be its season opener.

A rather stylized cross between Keystone Kops and “Mystery Theatre,” Loot is a look into a dysfunctional British family whose matriarch has just died. It’s wildly wicked.

The bereaved husband is already being primed for marriage by the visiting nurse (who of course is young, attractive and lusts for money). The irreverent son has dreams of opening a house of ill repute. And then there’s the man from the Public Water Works…

The loot, which is on one level what the play is about, is hidden in the house; the robbers are the son and his buddy. Joshua Biton plays the son Hal (who looks quite a bit like a more masculine James McArthur), who has partnered with his longtime mate Dennis to rob the bank. The bank just happens to be next door to the mortuary where Dennis works.

An authority figure claiming to be from Public Works sets everyone on edge when he invades the house and starts asking probing questions. Superbly played by the actor George Taylor, it’s no surprise to the audience that the man who says he’s from the Water Works is in fact one of the heads of the local constabulary.

Mr Taylor is a wonderful casting choice because his character, Truscott, has the air and physique of a spoofed Sherlock Holmes. Mr Taylor’s timing and facial expressions help keep the play on-line, rather than over-the-edge.

Playing the religious and self-righteous father, Ken Parker is a very fine character actor. A Yale graduate, Mr Parker is dedicated to theatre, both on stage and behind the scenes. He has taught acting and was a founding member of the Boston Post Road Stage Company (which did some very funny plays). Having seen him in a number of productions in the Connecticut area, it’s clear why STW selected him for this role.

Though given a smaller part, Philip Gardiner plays the policeman Meadows as if it were a lead. His restraint and carriage make him totally credible.

Andrea Bianchi is just a little excessive as the conniving nurse, but that might have been director Moser’s intention. Her wit and convoluted explanations for some of the rather contrived predicaments are why the playwright has been dubbed “a connoisseur of chaos.”

Directed by the sensitive and talented Douglas Moser, Loot is just on the brink of a little too much mugging. It’s a play my daughter would term silly, yet there are some underlying and powerful statements about police brutality that are very real and frightening.

Playwright Joe Orton, probably best known for the play What the Butler Saw, was a scintillating wit. This is not a play to bring children to, but it is an entertaining evening for adults.

(Playing through October 10, tickets and additional information can be obtained by calling 359-4414. Stamford TheatreWorks’  theatre is at Sacred Heart Academy, at the corner of Strawberry Hill Avenue and Fifth.)