For as long as fathers have had daughters, they have felt an overwhelming need to protect them – a daunting task in and of itself, made even harder in today’s society of all access internet and social networking. A social faux pas that 20 years ago would have created some embarrassment and a local urban legend can now go viral, spread across the globe and alter lives forever. Katselas Theatre Company and Rogue Machine Theatre’s production of “Small Engine Repair” beautifully examines this new phenomenon and how the internet has insidiously woven itself into our everyday lives to be both our damner and our redeemer.
John Pollono serves not only as playwright, but helms the cast as Frank the owner of Small Engine Repair, the business where the play takes place. Pollono does an excellent job as the seemingly innocuous friend trying to mend a rift between two old buddies, when in reality he is the mastermind behind a far more sinister plot. As the only character that truly has a fully developed arc, Pollono is the catalyst for the majority of the action that takes place and sets the pace for the rest of the cast.
Michael Redfield as Packie and Donnie Smith as Swaino perfectly complement Pollono’s stoic leadership. With the help of some Johnny Walker Blue, past sins are forgiven and they easily fall into their old childhood banter. Redfield plays the comic relief to great effect, including some well-timed slapstick and Smith provides the swagger of the cool guy to round out the gang. Josh Helman, as Chad Walker, is spot-on in look and demeanor as the outsider-rich boy-college kid, but falls a little flat in his reminisces.
However, that flatness is not entirely his fault. For as clever and witty as Pollono’s script is, it is also highly formulaic. Every piece of critical back story is preceded by one of the characters excusing himself from the stage. Three out of four times that excuse is to “take a piss” and when the same device is used four times in the span of 90 minutes, it gets a little old. So by the time Helman delivers his strategic information, there may as well have been a big neon sign flashing above the stage saying, “Pay attention audience, this is important!” Thankfully, the climax has a big enough bang to help forgive the predictability leading up to it. The ending dips into the maudlin, emphasized and made more touchy-feely by Andrew Block’s staging, but after the night these characters have had, even that’s understandable.