Theater Review: The Code

by Emily Weekley | March 9, 2023

The Red Barn Theater’s newest show this season, The Code, let’s viewers into a pensive experience with its characters in order to contemplate society, change, and the price of being true to oneself. In the theater, the audience is taken back in time to 1950s Hollywood, where the glamorous were coming face-to-face with the tensions of blacklisting. 

Written by Michael McKeever and directed by Christopher Renshaw, The Code references the Hays Code that set moral guidelines on the film industry from 1938 until the late 1960s. The play itself takes place over one intimate evening in 1950 at a cocktail party in the fashionable home of Billy Haines, played by Tom Wahl. The events of the evening serve as a microcosm of the ripple effects of a government’s interference with identity. Tallulah Bankhead is brought to life in all her outspoken glory by Mary Falconer, as she and Haines illustrate the importance of honest, true friendship as they await the arrival of another guest. 

Haines is attempting to live a life true to his sexual identity in a time that, as Bankhead tells the audience, wasn’t kind to homosexuality. Henry Wilson, played by David Black, is a foil to Haines, representing the acceptance of a stifling and sometimes violent and abusive culture. Wilson is intense and stiff, and Black inhabits the role in such a way as to make the audience appalled by a way of life common to the era and despicable to confront. Haines is, on the other hand, inspiring and steadfast, and Wahl balances the authority, modesty, and sensitivity of the character well. This all unfolds as the impressionable young Chad Manford, played by Carlos Ortega Amorin, observes the two paths from which he can choose to follow, represented by Wilson and Haines. Manford is confused, impressionable, and thinks he is on the cusp of realizing an impossible dream.

The stage evokes immediate nostalgia for the period, its black-and-white checkered floors, black walls, white lamps and frames, glass bar cart, and white, fur-covered settee. This color palette is cut only by the striking red of roses and the dress worn by Bankhead and designed by Gary R. Marion. As the rest of the cast dons black, white, and grey, the set becomes a metaphor for the false dichotomy that the enforcement of the moral codes of the era was. 

As a viewer, the venue and all of the elements of the play come together to make you feel as if you are really at this intimate gathering, which can at once be uncomfortable and delightful. While moments of the plot are disheartening, the show’s message is unavoidably hopeful: people like Haines were living a life that would one day, perhaps the day you will walk into when you exit the theater after the play, become a story that may inspire real, permanent change. 

The Code runs March 7th – 25th at the Red Barn Theater at 319 Duval Street (in back). You can get your tickets at redbarntheatre.com or by calling the box office, open from 3:00–5:00p.m. on weekdays, at 305-296-9911.

PRESS RELEASE
For further information, call: Bob Bowersox at 302-540-6102

For Immediate Release

---

Photo by: Roberta DePiero

Actors: (l to r) Tom Wahl, Mary Falconer, David Black, Carlos Ortega Amorin

It’s true: the more things change, the more they stay the same. Or, since we’re in today’s Florida, it might be more relevant to say that no matter the strides we’ve made over the years, there’s always someone who sees the old ways as preferable.

While playwright Michael McKeever may not have set out to write a play that resonates so vibrantly with what many in our community are struggling against today, his latest play, “The Code”, running March 7-25 at Key West’s Red Barn Theatre, does just that. Written about Hollywood in the 1950’s, it is most certainly germane to the LGBTQ issues that have arisen in today’s Southernmost State.

The play is set in the stylish home of Billy Haines, an actual silent film megastar who left the film business for personal reasons that become apparent as the story unfolds. Haines, now a successful interior designer, has invited a few friends for cocktails before they head out to a dinner party at famed director George Cukor’s house. Those friends include the glamorous and unfiltered film star Tallulah Bankhead; the oily and unpleasant agent, Henry Willson; and Willson’s latest find (and love interest) – aspiring young actor Chad Manford.

As the evening unfolds, it becomes clear that the “Code” which quickly dominates the conversation refers to the surreptitious rules that Hollywood has imposed to govern the way anyone LBGTQ has to behave in order to have a career and hope to succeed in Tinseltown. It’s a 1950’s version of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” seasoned with some “never admit” and a lot of “deny who you are and live a lie or go home”. To be gay in an industry policed by the Legion of Decency, the Hayes Code, and the House Un-American Activities Committee can not only get you labeled a deviant and a subversive, but it’s without doubt a death knell for a career on the silver screen.

McKeever’s skill with witty, very funny banter mixes perfectly with his ability to take a look at history from a different perspective. He channels Bankhead’s famous cutting wit, and nails the blackhearted Svengali a compromised agent can be. The play elicits its full share of laugh-out-loud moments in the way it looks at Old Hollywood and it’s foibles, but in the era of Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” and overt attempts at marginalization of the LGBTQ community, it has serious moments of resonance to modern times that cannot be missed.

The play stars South Florida favorite Tom Wahl as Haines, Key West favorites Mary Falconer as Bankhead and David Black as Willson, and showcases newcomer Carlos Ortega Amorin as Manford. It will be directed by Christopher Renshaw, the accomplished British director who helmed the World Premiere of the play last year. Renshaw has a Tony nomination and a couple of Drama Desk Awards for his play direction, and will be directing a new play based on the life of Louis Armstrong next year on Broadway. It’s a coup to have him directing here in Key West.

Tickets for “The Code” can be purchased at redbarntheatre.com or by calling the Red Barn box office at 305-296-9911. Ticketholders for Opening Night, March 7, are invited to remain after the show for the Opening Night party, where they can mingle with the cast and crew and enjoy a light nosh.

The play is sponsored in part by Royal Furniture, Design Group Key West, Culture Builds Florida, and the Monroe County Tourist Development Council.

Theater Review: Flaming Guns of the Purple Sage

by Emily Berg

Theater has the power to transport us to new and exciting places. When the lights go down on the house and come up on the stage we could find ourselves anywhere. The Red Barn Theater is aptly situated for this. Tucked off Duval, down the long path behind the Woman’s Club, the entrance to this playhouse always feels special to me. Like a secret hideaway where anything could happen. And it does in Flaming Guns of the Purple Sage. This eccentric comedy will transport you just about as far from Key West as possible. 

The play takes place on a ranch outside of Casper, Wyoming where the accents are thick and the cheap beer is flowing. Our hero, Big 8, is a former rodeo star spending the next phase of her life healing broken cowboys in exchange for their companionship. It’s a quiet rainy night on the ranch with her latest project, Rob Bob, when a knock on the door reveals a small pink haired, punk of a girl on the run from psycho. The drama unfolds from there and the audience is taken on a journey as a cast of characters, who think they’ve already seen everything add another story to their arsenal of campfire tales.

The play is very funny. The characters are extreme and the acting is wonderful. George DiBraud is a steady force as Big 8. DiBraud’s chemistry with Susannah Wells as Sheril, Big 8’s sister gives the production a wonderful warmth. Each cast member brings a charm and relatability to the otherwise unhinged group.

The dialogue is fast paced and the physical comedy nonstop. At any given moment there’s a lot happening on stage but the goal of each character is well voiced so I found it easy to track.

The characters are so severe and the story so offbeat it’s possible to get caught up in the details. As an example I found my mind swirling for meaning from a small moment when a can of Pabst Blue Ribbon is referred to as a “local beer”. Anyone in the audience visiting from Milwaukee make take exception to the Wyoming crew claiming the cheap beer. But I couldn’t help but wonder ‘is this a red herring?’ With all of the outlandish antics unfolding before me that little moment felt intentional.

I found there to be many moments like this throughout the play and I believe they enhanced the experience. My advice would be to not over-think it. Sit back, enjoy the ride and let this play give the best gift theater can offer: entrance to a world unlike your own. 

Flaming Guns of the Purple Sage runs now through February 25 at the Red Barn Theater. Tickets are still available at redbarntheater.com

Theater Review: Flaming Guns of the Purple Sage

by Emily Weekley

Yeehaw!

Flaming Guns of the Purple Sage has opened at the Red Barn Theater and is ready to take you on a wild ride. If you are up for a ropin’-and-ridin’, guns-a-balzin’, hilarious good time, you won’t wait to high-tail it down to the box office.

Written by Jane Martin, a playwright cloaked in mystery and believed to actually be playwright Jon Jory under a pseudonym, Flaming Guns of the Purple Sage is a Western satire with all the dramatic elements you would expect: cowboys, impending ranch foreclosure, unexpected affairs, and Chekhov’s gun in the first act. This is the latest of several of Martin’s plays that have been produced by the Red Barn over the years, and a terrifically fun choice for the audience on the part of director Joy Hawkins.

The stage is configured as a kitchen and dining room, adorned on the brown walls with posters from the classic John Wayne-era Westerns on one side and posters from the rodeo circuit on the other. Details like crushed PBR cans, a shotgun rack, big shining belt buckles, and cowboy tchotchkes create an atmosphere that foreshadows both the characters and situation that the audience enters as the exposition begins drenched in the sounds of the thunderstorm outside.

But it’s not just the weather that has a storm brewing; the point-of-attack has the twitchy Shedevil thundering into the kitchen where former rodeo rider Big 8 and cowboy Rob Bob are discussing the challenges facing them, a foreclosure and an injury, respectively. Shedevil is not from around these parts, and it shows. As she stirs up drama in the middle of the night, it is only the beginning of the cyclone that has followed her to town, bringing with it gruesome scenes set against the folks of the rodeo circuit.

George DiBraud delivers the perfect down-and-out cowgirl who is trying to cling to a life wherein chapters are closing with little certainty of what might be next. Both DiBraud and Iain Wilcox, who plays the young, dreamy-eyed, naïve rodeo rider Rob Bob, impressively deliver a dialogue the discourse of which is fast-paced and challenging and that draws the audience right into that rural home on the range. Cassidy Timms as Shedevil uses the entire stage to convey the nervousness, scheming, and desperation of the stranger who’s come to town. Susanna Wells plays Shirl, Big 8’s sister, and delivers comedic lines so perfectly timed that the audience finds itself delighted throughout the action, and the conveyed charm of the character distracts completely from the grisly happenings onstage. Together, these actors seem so well choreographed that the intensity of the rising action is seamless, a notable feat for a play where the action keeps the viewers perpetually on their toes.

Supporting cast members Mathias Maloff as Black Dog, Tim Dahms as Baxter Blue, and Jack McDonald as Memphis Donnie Pride add layers and comedic value to the impediments that cut into the action bringing new layers of challenge to that kitchen in Wyoming.

Don’t miss your chance to see Flaming Guns of the Purple Sage – you will be grateful for the good time. This play runs through February 25th at the Red Barn Theater at 319 Duval Street (in back). Get your tickets at redbarntheatre.com or by calling the box office, open from 3:00 – 5:00 p.m. on weekdays, at 305-296-9911.

PRESS RELEASE
For further information, call: Bob Bowersox at 302-540-6102

For Immediate Release

---

Photo by: Roberta DePiero

Actors: (back row, l to r): Jack McDonald, Iain Wilcox, and Mathias Maloff | (front row, l to r): George DiBraud, Susannah Wells, Tim Dahms, and Cassidy Timms

Imagine Hopalong Cassidy trying to date Carrie, or Miss Kitty chasing Chuckie around the corral with a meat cleaver in an Addams Family version of “Gunsmoke,” and you may get close to the outrageous fun and outright craziness awaiting you in the Red Barn’s next production.

“Flaming Guns of the Purple Sage”, written by the always-hilarious and rapier-sharp Jane Martin (“Says She”), opens January 31 and runs Tuesdays through Saturdays through February 25. It’s a preposterous mash-up of B-movie westerns and C-movie horror flicks that will literally have you laughing until you cry, even while you’re sitting in disbelief at what you’re seeing on stage.

“I just love its audacity,” said director Joy Hawkins. “It’s unlike anything I’ve ever directed before. It’s full of macabre people you love and hate at the same time. We can’t get through a rehearsal without laughing ‘til our sides ache.”

Without giving away too much (because the surprises are everything in this tale), “Flaming  Guns” tells the story of Big 8, a retired rodeo star who’s trying to keep her home from being foreclosed on. Living with her is Rob Bob, a rising young rodeo star (think more Gomer Pyle than John Wayne). Into this household comes SheDevil (her choice of name) who is pregnant by Big 8’s ne’er-do-well son, Lucifer Lee. But SheDevil is being hunted down by her very angry Ukrainian biker boyfriend, Black Dog, and when he shows up, things really begin to get interesting.

“Be aware,” Hawkins said, “that there is, indeed, a lot of violence and blood and sex all mixed in, but it’s done in a very farcical and satirical way. Be advised -- it’s definitely for adults…I wouldn’t bring the kids. But it’s a very cleverly-written send-up of those old B-movie Westerns and horror flicks. This is all fun and laughs about how crazy – in a very funny way -- human beings can be.”

The play stars a terrific mix of Key West’s best comedic actors, including George DiBraud, Susannah Wells, Mathias Maloff, Tim Dahms, Cassidy Timms, Iain Wilcox, and Jack McDonald. Hawkins directs and Carmen Rodriguez will be designed the western duds.

Curtain Up called it “a crowd-pleaser that keeps the audience howling”. The Courier-Journal calls it “hilarious and rip-snortin’”, and Concord Theatricals dubs it a “shoot ‘em up, knock ‘em up, cut ‘em up comic romp.”

Tickets are available now at redbarntheatre.com or by calling 305-296-9911. Sponsored in party by the Smith Law Firm, Culture Builds Florida, and the Monroe County Tourist Development Council.