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Perry Laylon Ojeda: The Trick |
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At: The Duplex
Reviewer: David Roberts for Theatre Reviews Limited |
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There is a bit of the predator in all of us. Perhaps we are not (or would rather not admit we are) sexual predators, but we are hunters of many kinds. We hunt at work for promotions and advancements, we hunt in parking lots for places to park, we hunt in video stores for the movies we know are there just for our picking, and we hunt for gratification and acceptance. At the Duplex we meet Zach, a handsome, successful and somewhat predatory gay actor who is always on what he calls "the hunt" for his next sexual conquest.
Perry Laylon Ojeda portrays Zach with the perfect combination of next-door-boy charm and big game hunter bravado and the combination works very well. The one-man show opens with Zach "breaking up" with Franklin because he cannot promise Franklin (his new "boyfriend" of three long weeks) that he will be faithful to him while he's on a nine month out-of-city tour. Free of Franklin, Zach hits the bar scene on his first stop, Cleveland, and shows us his hunting technique which betrays him as neither a bottom (like his friend Bruce) nor a top (like his friend Wally) but rather a flexible, club soda drinking guy who's predatory behavior gives "new meaning to being stuffed and mounted." Zach, we discover, is a Mormon who is "over being a Mormon enough to be gay, but not enough to drink."
  
All this works well for Zach until he meets Josh who completely turns Zach's world upside down. After they meet at the bar and chat for a while, they go out for a sandwich and later go back to Josh's place. They discover how much they have in common (including Ripley's Museum) and have wonderful sex (Josh promised it would be "the best sex of his life -- believe it or not!"). Zach stays over and the next morning is confused about what happened but ready to go back to his hotel and return to his predatory routine as soon as possible. He even dramatically rips up Josh's card since he has does not intend to ever call him. But Zach has been touched. Josh told Zach that he wanted him and wondered if Zach wanted him, too. Josh told Zach he was "beautiful." This didn't fit Zach's "slut" personality profile and Zach felt himself losing control. And control is one major issue here for Zach and for all predatory behavior. Losing control puts one in a vulnerable place, a place where one can be rejected.
To say more here would be to "give away" the story. The play continues with Zach becoming the pursued instead of the pursuer. He tries in every way possible to sabotage the relationship with Josh. Zach parades his predatory self in front of Josh in Chicago (where they meet again) and even that doesn't stop Josh. Simply put, Josh wanted to really get to know Zach, and hoped Zach wanted to get to know him. But Josh likes Zach just as he is, knows that Zach is running from him, and cares enough for Zach to want to know why. In one of the play's more touching scenes, Zach confesses his fear of rejection, his fear of Josh getting to know him and not liking what he found. Zach asks Josh, "How can you like me when I don't like me?"
It is difficult sometimes to be loved. In one of Carson McCullers plays, one of the characters says that in life and relationship, there is the one who loves and there is the beloved, and "it's more difficult to be the beloved." You see (and I've saved this until now), Josh is a cardio-thoracic surgeon and he has managed to get right into Zach's heart in a way no one had before, massaging it and restoring it to a health and vigor its owner almost couldn't bear. But he's a good surgeon and the whole "operation" is eventually very successful.
Perry Laylon Ojeda has written this one-man piece with great skill. His monologue is not all "preachy" and allows the audience to find a place (or places) where they can connect in a significant way. He assumes the roles of all the characters and has developed "personalities" and voices and mannerisms for each. I spoke briefly to Perry after the performance and found him to be one of the most honest playwrights I've met. And it's that honesty which allows us to connect with his work. He's currently in La Cage Aux Folles at the Westchester Broadway Theatre as well as appearing at the Duplex on Tuesday nights. He is a very good playwright and an outstanding actor who is professional in every way, including knowing that a playwright/actor should not direct himself. Karen Azenberg (Prom Queens Unchanged) directs Perry with freedom and with grace to make this evening a wonderful experience for the mind, heart and soul for all lovers, and all those beloved. Please do not miss it. "The Trick" has been extended through June.
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Written and directed by Perry Laylon Ojeda; directed by Karen Azenberg; costume design by David Mills; sound design by Steve Carl and Bryan McPartlin. At the Duplex, 61 Christopher Street, Tuesdays at 7:00 pm through June. (212) 255-5438 for tickets.
WITH: Perry Laylon Ojeda
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