By Michael Barbieri****Have they met before? Is he or isn’t he? Will they leave together? And where the hell is that bartender? In Dan Manjovi’s intriguing and mesmerizing new play, Picked Up, two men find themselves caught between the possibility of what could be and the reality of what was.
Manjovi, an ASCAP and Backstage Bistro Award winner, is a pianist, composer, vocalist, lyricist, teacher and performer. His music has been recorded by Donna Summer and Michael Feinstein, among others, and his song “Somethin’s Comin’ My Way” was featured in the Academy Award winning film Precious: Based on the Novel Push by Sapphire. His original musical I Am, I Will, I Do premiered at Playwrights Horizons and is headed for a full production, while Picked Up is being produced as part of the Broadway Bound Theatre Festival.
Picked Up is set in The Hangout, a dark, somewhat sleazy backroom gay bar in New York’s West Village. As the lights come up, we see Man 1 (Joseph J. Parks) sitting alone with a beer. He’s soon joined by Man 2 (Galen Murphy-Hoffman). Each seems quite the opposite of the other. Man 1 is brooding and guarded, wearing a t-shirt and jeans, with his longish hair in a small man bun. Man 2 is a few years older, more open and affable, with a more collegiate look—trim beard, slacks, button-down shirt and tie. Most importantly, while Man 2 is openly, proudly gay, Man 1 remains ambiguous as to his own sexual identity. Their early interactions are uncomfortable, with each one alternately teasing and cock-blocking the other. Their awkward attempts at conversation lead to the eventual discovery that they’re both from Brooklyn. Things take a darker turn, however, as they share moments from their pasts. The tipping point comes when Man 2 asks if they might’ve met before.
Manjovi’s tale swept us along, as bits and pieces of each man’s past and present life were revealed, creating a subtle mystery. We learned about the younger man’s difficult home life with his sick mother and about the older one’s allegedly open relationship with his husband. Most importantly, we learned about events that took place in a cruisy parking lot with which they were both familiar in their younger days.
As for the performance itself, Parks played Man 1 with an understated intensity that gave him that “bad boy” appeal; one can understand why the other man was attracted. His tough guy façade cracked a bit, however, when we saw him on the phone with his mother. His frustration and vulnerability made for a nice contrast. Murphy-Hoffman’s portrayal of Man 2 seemed, at first, a bit more artificial—somewhat actor-y. As the story progressed, however, and we learned more about him—his tenuously open relationship, the fact that “his hormones led him into the bar” and the hidden pain he associates with cruising—the artifice fell away and revealed a compelling, sympathetic and well-rounded character.
Manjovi’s script was absorbing and fairly gripping. In particular, the dialogue between the characters flowed nicely and felt real. The solo passages, however, with each man reminiscing about his past, while well written, seemed to lack the haze of memory. The words came so precisely, they felt a bit more like monologues than memories. This could possbly be rectified with just a bit of directorial tweaking.
Christopher Scott’s direction was economical and tight, keeping the action moving, even through the silent gaps where the men waited for the elusive bartender, or when they simply didn’t know what to say to each other. Josh Iacovelli’s set was spare, yet evocative of the old-style Village gay bars, particularly the flats on each side of the stage, decorated with old show fliers, handmade signs and Tom of Finland drawings. Eric Norbury’s lighting was simple and effective—appropriately dim, with red accent lights to lend a bit of sleaziness.
I have to say I wasn’t a huge fan of the extremely abrupt ending. I was hoping for some sort of definite resolution. I will concede, however, that events in real life are rarely tidy and wrapped up in a clean 90 minutes. And If the old saying about leaving the audience wanting more holds true, then I’ll admit I wanted more! I found myself invested in these characters and their stories. I look forward to seeing where this production goes from here. Who knows… perhaps we’ll see Picked Up: The Sequel at some point. Maybe we’ll even find that bartender!
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