Review: TRUE WEST at Copley Theatre, Aurora IL

There are no true westerns anymore.

Part of the dialogue from the current production in the BOLD series at Paramount’s Copley Theatre. The late, great Sam Shepard’s 1980 play True West is running through August 31. There is a reason this series is called BOLD. This is an intense, dark and, at times, funny play. There are moments of holding your breath, gasping out loud and, sometimes, laughing.  

The emotions of this play grab you in different ways during each scene. It’s the story of 2 estranged brothers who are now living together in their Mother’s home while she is in Alaska. Austin (Jack Ball making his memorable Copley debut) is a screenwriter and is hoping to make a deal with producer Saul Kimmer (smoothly played by Joshua L. Green). Austin’s brother Lee (terrifyingly played by Ben Page) arrives shortly before Saul. Lee needs money so he robs homes at night.

He learns from Austin that a screenplay can reap monetary rewards so he decides to do a screenplay. It is a very bizarre Western. He meets Saul and convinces him to play to golf so he can pitch his idea.  Saul loses the golf game to Lee. They had made a bet that if Saul lost, he would do Lee’s screenplay and not Austin’s. This begins a very horrible sibling rivalry. Austin now is drinking heavily and Lee is trying to write his screenplay. At this point it feels like the brothers have switched personalities.  

Between Austin’s drunkenness and the constant crickets, Lee loses composure in a way that has the audience holding its breath. The house is now a mess. Lee and Austin are trying to one up each other. During all of this, their Mother (Caron Buinis) arrives home. Her sons are out of control and fighting. She doesn’t stay long. Austin and Lee continue to fight and as the stage goes to black at the end, there is no resolution. The audience does not know how it ends. We have to draw our own conclusion.

Artistic Director and director, Jim Corti, has created a work that will give you pause about family, truth and control. The other star of this production is the kitchen designed by Lauren M. Nichols. It looks like a working kitchen which includes a wall phone and fully stocked cabinets. In one scene, Austin is making coffee – you can smell the coffee. In another scene, which is incredibly funny, there are toasters and Austin has made toast. Yes, you can smell the toast. Sound designer Forrest Gregor has the crickets chirping from outside throughout the entire show. Properties Designer Ivy Thomas has made sure the kitchen is complete in every way possible.

This is not a happy story, but if you want to see and hear good storytelling, this is the show. Sam Shepard brought out the best and worst in actors in performing his works. This is his legacy. It has been performed many times. This production is one not to be missed. Copley, I think Sam would be very proud of this telling.