Consciously or unconsciously Ron Scott Stevens’ The Cutting Den is a modern day version of the classic Robert E. Sherwood play/film The Petrified Forrest made famous in the Thirties by Bette Davis and Leslie Howard. All the characters in Mr. Stevens’ play are yearning for lives they can never live, have hopes they can never fulfill and are caught up in situations over which they have no control, just like in the Sherwood play.
Casimiro (“Cass”) owns the Cutting Den, which is actually a front for a mob betting ring. He lives in constant fear of Joey Bastardi, the mob boss and his thick, bullish henchman, Eddie. Since the shop doesn’t seem to have any real customers, it’s clear that Cass’s income is totally based on the bets he takes from the gambling fools who constantly call him during the play and thus Cass is totally at the mercy of his mafia connections and must constantly toe the line.
Three locals fill out the cast: Lana, is a no-longer-young, mini-skirted sweetie pie who works at the Cutting Den as a “receptionist” only because she’s sexy; Donald is a bit of a lonely numbskull hanging out at the shop for company; and Noah, the aptly named local Cassandra who’s a senior citizen full of doom and gloom for the environment. Lana’s fiancé Ralph is on the lam because he owes Joey many thousands of dollars. In a plot twist Lana is guided by Cass, who feels sorry for her, into making a sure-thing bet which gets her the money to bail Ralph out. But, all her lovely wishes and dreams to get out are dashed brutally when Ralph breaks off their engagement.
Donald is constantly put upon by the thick-head mob enforcer, Eddie. A running joke has Eddie constantly stealing Donald’s umbrellas. Donald pays for his naiveté with a beating by Eddie.
The elderly Noah, who is tolerated as a neighborhood oddball, comes in and out making dark pronouncements about the environment.
A seventh “character” in The Cutting Den is the constant rain hitting the window of Charlie Azzue’s realistic barbershop set (complete with old-fashioned barber pole outside the shop). The downpour feeds the anxiety of all the characters and helps create a claustrophobic atmosphere that builds and builds to a violent, but fitting ending. Tired of being in constant fear of his life Cass finally takes a heroic stand and wins back his dignity and the respect of his friends, family and neighbors.
The acting ranged from terrific to a bit rough around the edges as this was the first public showing of the play. Outstanding were Clyde Baldo as the much put-upon shop owner, Cass and Marla Marron as the tough/tender Lana whose heart is so awfully broken. They both managed to keep their Brooklyn accents and mannerisms without stepping over into caricature. They clearly loved their characters as did Bernard Feinerman who kept the talkative Noah a sadly needy, yet realistic figure as did Stewart Schneck as the much put-upon Donald. Although the character of Donald was often exasperatingly thick and deprived of love, Mr. Schneck made him sympathetic.
On the evil side, Robert Corban played the mob boss Joey with real meanness and authority and never slid into stereotype; Doug DeWitt, a former champion boxer was well-cast as the thuggish Eddie. He may need a few more performances to feel totally at home in the part, but he is certainly a perfect physical replica of anyone’s idea of a mafia enforcer.
Mr. Stevens who both wrote and produced The Cutting Den clearly used his personal experiences to give the dialogue just the write quotidian ambience. Richard Caliban’s direction was attuned to the pacing. Even though some of the exits and entrances were a bit arbitrary, Mr. Caliban’s feel for timing and the overall drama kept The Cutting Den rambling smoothly along until its satisfying ending.
The Cutting Den is a potent slice of life, colorfully written with a good ear to local dialect and rhythms and with enough surprises and shocks to keep the audience totally interested.
THE CUTTING DEN
By Ron Scott Stevens
The Soho Playhouse
15 Vandam St.
New York, NY
February 4th – 21st, 2010
Tickets: www.thecuttingdenoffbroadway.com