Play hard to watch, but harder to miss
Exceptional production of this demented drama does have its laughs
JULIE YORK COPPENS

It's just a story.

Remember this, and you might emerge unscathed from "The Pillowman," Martin McDonagh's acclaimed play now at Actor's Theatre of Charlotte. There are other, subtler comforts to be found in McDonagh's script, a demented mind-bender ingeniously staged and boldly acted in the dark little house on Stonewall Street. But I can't discuss them here without revealing too much of the plot. In fact, I can't discuss much of anything without revealing too much of the plot.

You'll just have to trust me: As hard as "The Pillowman" can be to watch, to miss this outstanding Charlotte production would be, for almost any theater lover, an even greater punishment.

For a completely unspoiled viewing experience, stop here.

Dennis Delamar directs a smart, committed company, led by Billy Ensley as Katurian, a reclusive writer of short stories with a day job in a slaughterhouse and a mentally disabled brother to look after. We meet Katurian in a dingy interrogation room, where he's being grilled, almost literally, as part of a multiple-homicide investigation by two crooked officers of this unnamed totalitarian state.

Detectives Tupolski (Brian Robinson) and Ariel (Michael Simmons) suspect a link between Katurian's macabre fairy tales and a series of gruesome murders with child victims. The cops have an eye, too, on the brother (Chip Decker, fantastic in the play's toughest role).

And like any self-respecting pair of fictional crime-solvers, Robinson and Simmons have their comedy act down pat. The first scene is hysterical.

Four other performers -- Kristen Jones and Lee Thomas, and brave juveniles Amanda Berkowitz and Alex Aberman -- play mostly silent parts, acting out a few of Katurian's dark fantasies (and at least one of his realities). These episodes serve "The Pillowman" as a beautifully illustrated edition might serve any fable, heightening our imaginative encounter with the tales.

Still, the actors all are guilty of overplaying at times, and to various degrees. They, too, could afford to remember that "The Pillowman" is a story, albeit a profound one, with incredibly high stakes for all concerned. But that's all in McDonagh's script. Relax, actors -- we'll get it.

The jokes, too, would go over bigger if the actors didn't seem so aware of their lines as jokes. Again, for this cast, it comes down to trust: trust that the playwright and the director have done their jobs, and that we in the audience will do ours. That confidence is bound to come as "The Pillowman" settles into its three-week run.

Delamar's focused, unfussy direction benefits from inspired work by all the show's designers: Decker again (sound), Hallie Gray (lighting), Myk Chambers (costumes), and Michael Simmons (credited with the show's "specialty makeup," in other words "all the nasty stuff").

But Stan Peal's set is in a class by itself. Startling, inventive, evocative, Peal's environment unfolds, aptly enough, like the kind of storybook no child should be left with at lights out -- without distracting us for a moment from the power of McDonagh's words. Brilliant.

On Wednesday's opening night, I saw patrons duck out at intermission, and heard others say, after the show, that it was one of the best locally produced dramas they'd ever seen. The two reactions aren't necessarily contradictory; it's possible to admire this "Pillowman," to be gripped by its drama and to laugh at its audacious comedy, and yet still feel, maybe after a long day, that it's more than you can take. No shame in that.

See "Pillowman," but see it on a night when you're up for something extraordinary -- and bring your most intelligent friend, because you'll want to talk about it afterward. Then later, when you're lying in bed, eyes on the ceiling, ears ringing with McDonagh's unspeakable language, head filled with this production's disturbing imagery, tell yourself again: It's just a story.

Pleasant dreams. Theater REVIEW

The Pillowman

Life imitates art, horrifically, in Martin McDonagh's acclaimed play. Mature.

WHEN: 8 p.m. today, 7:30 p.m. Wednesday and various times through Dec. 1. No show Thanksgiving Day.

WHERE: Actor's Theatre of Charlotte, 650 E. Stonewall St. ADMISSION:

$23-$28. 7:30 p.m. Wednesday is pay-what-you-can.

DETAILS: 704-342-2251; or www.actorstheatrecharlotte.org. Julie York Coppens