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Masthead
A CurtainUp DC Review
Detroit

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". . .to be honest I feel like the real opportunities are the ones that fall in your lap. Like winning the lottery or someone's rich uncle needing a personal assistant."— Sharon
Detroit
to R: Tim Getman, Gabriela Fernandez-Coffey, Danny Gavigan and Emily K. Townley (Photo by Stan Barouh)
Woolly Mammoth Theatre has re-configured its space for its production of Detroit. The audience is seated on opposite sides of a square, while the set, consisting of two almost identical brick and aluminum track houses with contiguous yards, take up the other two sides.

Tom Kamm's terrific set, along with Eric Pearson's video projections on to the houses exteriors of such pursuits as neighborly get-togethers, soccer with the kids and backyard barbecues, are excellent. You are there, for better or worse. Welcome to the "burbs."

The house with nice patio furniture and a well-kept yard is occupied by Mary (Emily K. Townley) and Ben (Tim Getman). She works in a law firm; he, well, he's lost his job in finance and says he's working from home, building a website. Opposite, in a house that seems abandoned as it's void of furniture with sheets hanging in place of drapes and a yard that is a mess, are Sharon (Gabriela Fernandez-Coffey) and Kenny (Danny Gavigan). They're fresh from rehab and wouldlike to have decent jobs but their skills are limited and so are their prospects.

The title,is metaphoric. It means decay, end of good jobs, steady incomes, affordable health care, but most of all, hope for the future. What playwright Lisa D'Amour is saying (repeatedly) is that the American Dream has gone up in smoke. And just in case you didn't get the point over the preceding hour and a half, Frank (Michael Willis), Kenny's erstwhile relative, ultimatelygives a long speech about the good old days in suburbia.

The perfect set is also illuminated well by Colin K. Bills. John Vreeke's direction is crisp and the actors deliver well-paced, convincing performances. But the play is tedious and riddled with cliches. For me, the fact that it was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in 2011 diminishes the stature of the Prize.

Here's a link to Curtainup's review of the New York production .

Detroit
By Lisa D'Amour
Directed by John Vreeke
Cast: Gabriela Fernandez-Coffey (Sharon); Danny Gavigan (Kenny); Tim Getman (Ben); Emily K. Townley (Mary); Michael Willis (Frank).
Set Design by Tom Kamm
Costume Design by Ivania Stack
Lighting Design by Colin K. Bills
Sound Design by Christopher Baine
Video Design by Erik Pearson

Running time: 1 hour and 45 minutes, no intermission.

Woolly Mammoth, 641 D Street, NW, Washington, DC; woollymammoth.net; 202-393-3939;
September 9 to October 6, 2013.
Tickets are $25 to $77.50, with various discounts available.
Review by Susan Davidson based on September 13, 2013 performance. REVIEW FEEDBACK
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