Go 'West' for family drama at Stars Playhouse
Feb. 14—Sibling rivalry plays out amid the backdrop of the make-it-or-break-it world of Hollywood in "True West," which opens Friday at Stars Playhouse.
The lean Sam Shepard play focuses on estranged brothers Austin (Nolan Long), a successful writer and family man, and older brother Lee (John Spitzer), a drifter who often stirs up trouble.
Lee's latest opportunity comes when he barges in on Austin, who has agreed to house-sit for their mother (Karin Harmon) as a way to give himself quiet time to work on his latest screenplay.
Long, who came to the project at the urging of co-star Spitzer, said the opening scene is his favorite in the show.
He wrote in an email, "As an audience member, it just leaves you with so much ambiguous knowledge about these brothers' relationship, but enough to know there's tension and understand where some of it is coming from.
"As an actor, figuring out all that unspoken tension and backstory is some of my favorite work to do."
The situation escalates with the arrival of Saul (Cory Geurtsen), a film producer to whom Austin plans to show his screenplay, who ends up being intrigued by a pitch from Lee instead.
Needing to make good on the project Saul actually wants, the brothers must work together on crafting the story that could make or break both their lives.
By staging "West" at the playhouse, director Karl Wade puts the audience right in the thick of this family drama.
Long wrote, "The size of the venue and the staging of the production makes it almost impossible to not feel as if you're a part of the moments along with the actors."
After the brothers come to some hard truths about their lives and their relationship, viewers may walk away considering their own bonds.
"'Family' is never really a simple thing; even at its most positive moments, it's layered and nuanced and shaded by years of interactions and memories," Long wrote. "There is no one 'right' way to be a part of a family, it's about whether or not the members of that family can be there how they need to be there for each other."
Stefani Dias can be reached at 661-395-7488. Follow her on Twitter at @realstefanidias.
