Patrick Healy surveys Christopher Walken's career in the New York Times today. What comes across is Walken's remarkable insecurity and nervousness about his more than four decades as an actor. What doesn't come across is much about Martin McDonagh's play, now in previews on Broadway. (It runs March 4-June 6; visit behandinginspokane.com.) In A Behanding in Spokane, Walken's character, Carmichael, lost his left hand 47 years ago. He encounters a couple of con artists (played by Anthony Mackie of The Hurt Locker and Zoe Kazan) who are willing to give him a hand, so to speak, by selling him one. The entire play takes place nearly in real time (in 90 mins.) and inside a hotel room -- so not much chance for local color there.
[poster from ilovenytheater.com]
I saw this production last night, and had very mixed feelings about it. I was sitting in the back of the mezzanine, which may have had something to do with it, but I definitely missed some of the things mentioned in the Times article, such as the characters' occasional moments of relating to each other. The script was entertaining and occasionally thought-provoking, but the characters did seem somewhat one-sided (again, perhaps dependent on the ability to see subtitles of expression). Also, the play doesn't actually take place in Spokane- we're merely mentioned 3 or 4 times as the place where "hillbillies" chopped off Charmichael's hand. Nevertheless, the show was certainly entertaining.
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