A sparkling production of Annie Baker’s Pulitzer Prize-winning The Flick is being produced by Forward Theater Co., in the university town of Madison, Wisconsin. Barely two weeks after the Off-Broadway show closed in mid-January, The Flick had its Wisconsin debut in the Overture Center, a stunning multi-theater complex provided by the woman who founded the American Girl series of historic and contemporary dolls. The 2013 play, about three underpaid employees in a run-down movie theater, first hit the boards in New York at Playwrights Horizons Mainstage Theater. It later transferred to another Off-Broadway Theater, the Barrow Theatre, and closed January 10. That production was praised for its use of dialogue and character development, despite the fact that very little happens through the evening. Much has been written about the play’s length, which originally stretched to three hours, 10 minutes. Off-Broadway subscribers complained to Playwrights Horizons about the work, in which conversation ebbs and flows as it does in reality. After winning the Pultizer, the play was not likely to be trimmed – and it isn’t in Wisconsin. Still, it seems slightly condensed by the Madison company (maybe the actors talk faster). It now clocks in at three hours, which includes a 15-minute intermission. The cast delivers superlative performances, led by Alexander Pawlowski. In playing the 30-something, overweight and under-achieving Sam, Pawlowski reveals a wealth of often surprising characteristics. He can appear gruff, but his sensitive side eventually surfaces. Sam may be wasting his life away in the (literally) crumbling theater, but he is well aware of his situation. That doesn’t stop two millennials, Avery (Marques D. Causey) and Rose (April Paul), from pointing out the futility of Sam’s existence. During the entire play, only one moviegoer (Alistair Sewell) makes a brief appearance. The trio’s tasks range from sweeping and mopping the single theater, as well as selling tickets and making popcorn (Sam and Avery), to running the 35-millimeter projector (Rose). This gives them lots of time to engage in idle chit-chat, interspersed occasionally by revealing elements. Although their East Coast accents tend to come and go, the actors are spot-on in navigating the levels of Baker’s script. All three of leads hail from Milwaukee. They have been seen in local productions, and it’s clear that, in the future, they will be seen in many more. The camaraderie between the characters is absolutely necessary to the plot, which gets a nasty twist at the story’s end. Director Molly Rhode (also from Wisconsin) deserves credit for fostering this connection between the cast members. If anything, the Madison production plays out on a set that may run more true to the playwright’s intentions. (Photos of the Off-Broadway set don’t seem to reflect the “run-down” nature of this theater.) Madison’s Stephen Hudson-Mairet creates a set that’s much closer to what the playwright imagined. From the theater’s water-spotted walls to its grimy-colored baseboards, not to mention its barely-working movie seats that have lost their capacity to flip up after use, the Forward Theater’s set isn’t much to look at. Perhaps the best addition is a pair of swinging doors at the back of the theater. The doors are sometimes opened gently, or banged open (by Sam) to show his frustration level. The set’s lighting (by Ann M. Archbold) is equally impressive. The millennials featured in the play are searching to find themselves. They also might think about expanding their vocabularies to give more meaningful feedback. When faced with someone revealing their “heavy” personal experiences, the only one-word responses they are likely to hear are “wow” and “amazing.” When Avery suggests that they all admit to something when confronted by the theater’s new owner, about the only word Rose uses to describe Avery’s plan is “intense.” It’s clear that neither she nor Sam is going to go along with it, but she can’t bring herself to say “no” in more honest terms. From start to finish, the Forward Theater production is a joy to watch. The only disappointing thing about it has nothing to do with what happened onstage. Looking around, one couldn’t help but notice the non-diversity of its audience. On the weeknight when this play was reviewed, the audience was almost exclusively white and elderly. In a city of more than 40,000 students, it would be hoped that more of them would wander over to the Overture Center from State Street’s nearby bars, student housing and libraries. The show, after all, is designed to resonate with them. Maybe the college students were studying for midterm exams.
