Speed-the-Plow by David Mamet-- what a trip! Mamet's scathing denunciation/exposition of the workings of the Hollywood jungle, where everyone is a whore and access is all, as performed by Raul Esparza, William H. Macy and Elisabeth Moss, is a gripping piece of theatricality. The snappy dialogue as twisted people fence for position in a depraved, insulated world of hypergreed is magnetic, and director Neil Pepe's sense of timing is thrilling. Macy has the tiny bit of vulnerability to momentarily step aside from his character's usual tunnel vision, Esparza will get a Tony nomination for his emotionally complex portrayal, and Moss is the first woman I've seen really fit the part of the woman smart and sexy enough to steer an upwardly mobile mogul from his anointed path.
Scott Pask's dual set and Brian MacDevitt lighting perfectly set the scene, and costumes by Laura Bauer, suggesting "The Transposed Heads," are perfect. This is great theater.
