Playwright Bruce Graham also becomes actor when his new play “Any Given Monday” moves to Act II Playhouse March 2 to 28. Graham (L), who plays Lenny, covers the gamut of politically incorrect topics with his best friend Mick (Pete Pryor), including football, family and marriage. “Any Given Monday,” a co-production with Theatre Exile, began downtown in February. Photo by Robert Hakalski.
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By Carrie Compton
Staff Writer
Lenny is a good guy who’s just had his world turned upside-down: His wife has left him for another man, his daughter’s philosophical musings seem to exacerbate his dilemma and his regular dose of Monday Night Football is doomed to failure as his two least-favorite teams will go head to head.
“Any Given Monday,” running through March 28 at Act II Playhouse in Ambler, takes on some pretty daunting tasks for a 90-minute-long play. Lenny loses a wife and in exchange finds himself taking on larger questions of life and death, violence, racism, marriage, friendship and even homelessness.
Critically acclaimed Philadelphia-based playwright Bruce Graham not only penned this dark, biting comedy, but is also joining the run in the role of Lenny.
“I did acting for years, I started out acting, I taught myself to write plays,” said Graham.
“I was a character actor and as a young bald short guy who wasn’t very photogenic, there wasn’t a whole lot out there for me. Now that I’m older, I’m more saleable.”
Anyone who’s seen Graham’s “The Philly Fan,” which recently appeared on the Act II stage, knows that Graham’s language and no-holds-barred iconoclasm is not for the faint of heart. In his newest play, “Any Given Monday,” the playwright tackles touchy subjects like racism and homelessness with no less equivocation than might be expected.
“A lot of the political correctness our society is obsessed with is just censorship. Anyone who’s seen ‘The Philly Fan’ knows I’m not P.C. My attitude is: if you’re offended, I’m not losing any sleep — as long as I got your ticket money, I don’t care. I’m not gonna clean it up to make you happy,” said Graham.
The play, which is not recommended for young audiences, zeros in on the aforementioned everyman, Lenny, and his best friend, the outspoken and politically incorrect Mickey, a lifelong worker on Philadelphia subways. Mickey, played by three-time Barrymore Award winner Pete Pryor, provides the acerbic take-no-prisoners attitude that, according to Graham, drives the piece.
“I don’t have to propel the plot like [Mickey] does. I just acted for the first time in years [in October], so I’m just getting my sea legs back here. I’m not saying Lenny’s part is easier; it’s just less driven,” said Graham.
The idea of using Monday Night Football is one that Graham has long considered as a framework for a story. According to the playwright, he’s been toying with the notion for a couple of decades. In “Any Given Monday,” Graham said that he hopes to draw similarities between violence in professional sports and violence in real life.
“[Monday Night Football] is a whole social thing between these two friends and it’s something they’ve been doing for years … but [the play] is tying violence of professional football into violence in real life,” said Graham. What kind of violence he’s referring to, however, is not something he’s willing to divulge.
“I can’t say what … just one of the risks of having a play with twists in it.”
While the comedy takes on many existential queries and wrangles with ethical conundrums throughout, at the end of the day, what Graham hopes the audience takes away from the experience is much simpler.
“First and foremost, I hope [audiences] are entertained. That’s my first job is to entertain. My first job is to transport you, tell a story and if you get something else out of it, hey, no extra charge. What’s neat is because I juggle a lot of questions in the play … but if you’re looking for wisdom you’ve come to the wrooooong playwright,” Graham joked.
Regardless of any modesty on the playwright’s end, “Any Given Monday” seems primed to be chock full of ideas and moral challenges that will fuel several post-play discussions. Graham’s mixture of social awareness, humor and refusal to self-censor in the name of political correctness should make for a memorable night at the theater, if not a memorable night — period.
“Any Given Monday”
runs at Act II Playhouse,
56 E. Butler Ave.,
Ambler, PA 19002,
March 3 – 28.
Tickets: $20 – $30.
Info: 215-654-0200
or www.act2.org.
March 9th, 2010
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