SLO Little Theatre searches for ‘True West’ in violent new play

San Luis Obispo Little Theatre’s latest production is a loud, violent tale of sibling rivalry writ large.

Sam Shepard’s Pulitzer Prize-nominated play “True West,” which wrestles with ideas of authenticity and identity, is directed by Mark Sitco, artistic director of Los Angeles theater company Barker Room Rep. The production runs through April 17.

Set in 1981 on the outskirts of Los Angeles, “True West” opens on a scene of relative tranquility.

As crickets chirp in the background, screenwriter Austin (Marcus DiMaggio) sneaks into the kitchen of his mother’s quiet suburban home, lights a candle and sits down at his typewriter.

As soon as the keys began clacking, however, a hulking figure emerges from the shadows, swigging a beer.

It’s Lee (Mike Fiore), Austin’s overbearing bully of an older brother.

“I’m not bothering you, am I?” he asks, ignoring Austin’s obvious discomfort. “I don’t want to break your concentration or nothin’.”

But the spell has been broken — and with it, any semblance of peace in this residential neighborhood in the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains, where Austin has retreated to work on his screenplay.

As we learn over the course of “True West,” Lee and Austin have a strained relationship that borders on antagonistic. Ivy League-educated Austin is career-oriented, whereas quick-tempered, violence-prone Lee gets his kicks breaking into people’s houses, stealing valuables and spending months wandering the Mojave Desert.

In other words, if Lee is a lean coyote stalking hapless house pets through the chaparral, his brother is a pampered and passive pooch.

Yet each sibling secretly admires the other. Austin admires Lee’s carefree existence, just as Lee envies the seemingly stable life of luxury his brother has found — complete with a wife, kids and a house.

That tension guides “True West.” We watch the brothers talk, tussle and compete for the attention of a Hollywood producer, Saul Kimmer (Tony T. Taylor, whose indeterminate accent is later revealed to be Australian).

We also see them demolish Erin Parsons’ props and David Linfield’s all-purpose set, the picture of Reagan-era domesticity with its tiled counters, wood cabinets and rack of houseplants standing by the sliding glass doors.

Pity the poor stage manager, Pam Hester, for having to deal with the destruction. It must take her a half-hour after each performance simply to sweep up the small mountain of drained liquor bottles and crumpled Coors beer cans.

The cast is capably costumed by Randal Sumabat and his assistant, Beatriz Pacheco. San Luis Obispo Little Theatre managing artistic director Kevin Harris handles lighting design, and shares sound design duties with Mark Sitko.

DiMaggio and Fiore throw themselves into their roles as the two squabbling brothers with gusto and physical abandon — standing on the countertop, lying on the table and rolling across the floor. Fiore in particular seems to be enjoying himself as he wails on a manual typewriter with a pair of golf clubs.

The actors also embrace Shepard’s smart, wickedly funny dialogue, which imbues the drama with abundant dark humor. (In one telling exchange, Austin grouses, “I wish I didn’t have to be doing business down here.” “I thought it was art you were doing,” Lee shoots back.)

Unfortunately, DiMaggio and Fiore’s enthusiasm for the material means that there’s not much moderation in their performances. They begin at nearly full volume and rarely relent.

Taylor is a comparatively subdued stage presence as Saul Kimmer. At least he has more time in the spotlight than Sue Miers, who plays the brothers’ Mom; her performance is brief and not especially memorable.

“True West,” which is presented without an intermission, similarly speeds by. But the pumped-up production still finds the time to pack plenty of actual and metaphorical punches.

This story was originally published April 5, 2016 at 2:54 PM with the headline "SLO Little Theatre searches for ‘True West’ in violent new play."