Review: THE BOYS IN THE BAND at The Bent

I went into this production by The Bent with some provenance. Back in the 20 teens I had the privilege of interviewing Larry Luckinbill on the 50th anniversary of Boys in the Band which was also the same year the remake came out. I watched the film. I read all about when the stage play came out in the 1960s, which is a powerful story in and of itself. I read about the playwright Mart Crowley, that there were two straight guys in the original production, and almost all of the other actors succumbed to AIDS.

We've come a long way since the 60s (although not nearly far enough) and this play is from a time when homosexuality was characterized as a mental illness. So judgment is present even before the curtain rises because it has always been there. And while this play is a comedy, it dissolves into a very nasty "party" game in the hands of the host, Michael (Terry Ray) at the birthday soirée he is throwing for his long time frenemy, Harold (Scott Khouri). There to memorialize the occasion are dear friends Donald (Scott Sterling Hill), Larry (Matthew Yenesel) and his bisexual lover Hank (Kai Brothers), Emory (Grey LeFey) and his partner Bernard (Tony Bradford).

An unexpected phone call and subsequent visit by Michael's straight college roommate, Alan (Kevin Steinberg) sets off Michael who begins to drink after five weeks of sobriety, and all five weeks of that sequestered bitchy shows up when Alan does.

The evening dissolves into an emotional bloodbath with Michael as Freddie Krueger, his words slicing and dicing deep into the other characters' secret places, gleefully using his sway to manipulate and ultimately tear them down while enjoying every second of it. Ray is so good in this role, I'm not sure the character of Alan or Steinberg, who portrays him, will ever recover. Someone should check on him.

All of the actors do a fine job, with Ray's megawatt performance commanding the stage, orchestrating the destruction of his friends-barbed witticism by barbed witticism. Watching his turn as an affable man into an emotional terrorist is riveting to watch. Reminds me of Jekyll and Hyde, or my mean gay uncle.

Hill's Donald was cool and collected, the banter between him and Michael set the pace keeping us well entertained until the other partygoers arrived. Drawing focus visually as well as with their comic delivery, was LeFey's Emory - an aging queen with no "Fs" left to give save the one Michael mines. A very funny and touching performance by LeFey.

Harold is the only character who finds some amusement in Michael's antics because he's an awful lot like Michael- he's in it for the drama. He and Donald are the only two that aren't pulled into Michael's game. Khouri does a very nice job as the outspoken, self-confident voyeur that is Harold. In fact, this may have turned into one of Harold's favorite birthdays.

That brings us to my final shoutout: Emrhys Cooper as Cowboy. Cowboy is Emory's birthday present to Harold. He even comes with a card tied around his wrist, and I will tell you that the temperature in the theater reached critical mass when he walked on stage (big thanks to costumer Cherlyn Lanning for the short shorts and lack of shirt). What Brad Pitt brought to Thelma and Louise Cooper brings to Boys. And just like the smart women who play dumb blondes, Cooper is an actor/dancer/writer/director/producer with his own production company. Cooper looks like he's having a blast in the role, and to be totally honest? He's such a beautiful man, he kinda makes up for all the ugliness Michael puts us through.

Director Steve Rosenbaum keeps things moving and the comedy stays at a crisp pace throughout but he isn't afraid to allow his actors moments of reflection, and that gives the audience the opportunity to feel right along with them. And it is a testament to his talent in staging that he had nine people and a fully-dressed set on a rather small stage and it never, not once, felt crowded.

Technicals were all solid as was Rosenbaum and Don McCormick's set design and build, and all the rest of Lanning's costumes. Nick Wass always gives good tech and this is no exception. He gave us a very fun pre-show and sound design within the show.

Back in 2018, when I asked Luckinbill to tell me his thoughts on the play the first time he read it, he said, "There was a lot of violence, sado-masochism, and it was not only rip-roaringly funny but funny in a genuine way."

I probably should have just said that.

Recommended.

Runs through May 7 at Palm Springs Cultural Center. Tickets.

*photography by Wilkinson.

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