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A Prayer For My Daughter by 6th @ Penn Theatre 
On the surface, it's just another senseless, but routine, robbery/murder case for hardened, veteran New York City detectives Francis Kelly and Jack Delasante. They have the two suspects -- a middle-aged gay man and his young, drugged-up accomplice whom he refers to as his "daughter." However, the detectives are not quite sure which one savagely murdered the elderly lady for her pocket change. To learn the details and get the confessions, they quickly confer on a plan of attack, combining psychological and physical abuse.
But though the case may seem routine, this will be no routine day at the precinct for the officers or the criminals. Thanks to playwright Thomas Babe's four complex characters and the compelling actors who play them, this interrogation will be a tense and intriguing drama wherein four people will have their souls pried open, allowing them to be more easily destroyed. Dale Morris, owner of 6th @ Penn Theatre and the San Diego Theatre Scene website, finally gets a chance to perform in his theatre for the first time since he purchased it last year. And with the hard-drinking, hard-hitting, and hard-heartened cop Francis Kelly, he has picked a good role to get back with. When Kelly chooses to finish interrogating the murder suspects while his daughter is threatening suicide, and continues even after he learns of her death, even the cold murderers are disgusted by his callousness. Dale's subtle, guarded, but troubled response to the news of his daughter's death nicely reflected his intense internal struggle as he fought conflicting emotions. Another great character is Jimmy. The young, mentally slow father of a young daughter has a drug addiction that rules his life and further hinders his already troubled mental state. Diep Huynh, who recently demonstrated his ability to play a mentally troubled man as the confessed arsonist in Sledgehammer's The Universal Monster Show, here offers an even more genuine and remarkable portrayal of a man who has only a tenuous grasp on his mind and actions. The show also includes excellent performances by John Nutten as Kelly's co-detective who finds himself trying to police his fellow officer almost as much as the murder suspects (yet has addictions of his own to contend with), as well as Brian Salmon as Jimmy's gay, drug providing partner in crime who finds himself driven to the breaking point by officers who unleash every weapon they can upon him -- with mixed success. Perhaps the weakest aspect of the play is an unsatisfying conclusion that seems overly jaded, with the officers knowingly allowing the wrong man to pay the brunt of the punishment with little explanation except that it just seems easier that way. Not only is it obviously the wrong thing for the officers to do, it is an action that seems a bit nonsensical, as it will likely backfire in the DA's court case and seems like an unusually quick surrender by two cops who in the beginning seemed to have well-deserved confidence in their ability to work their two suspects into revealing the truth. Except for that, the story was quite strong. That, combined with the great ensemble work and savvy direction by Robert May, resulted in an excellent production for 6th @ Penn's current off-night production. The show runs till July 24th with a Sunday matinee and every Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday night at 7:30 p.m. Rob Hopper ~ Cast ~
Francis Kelly: Dale Morris Jack Delasante: John Nutten Jimmy: Diep Huynh Sean: Brian Salmon Playwright: Thomas Babe Director: Robert May Stage Manager: Crystal Verdon Lighting Design: Sally Stockton Sound Design: Robert May Props/Set: Maggie Thompson and Isabella Lonardi |
