The Pushover

The Pushover
Chain Theatre
April 10, 2026 

Photo courtesy of Chain Theatre

John Patick Shanley’s new play, The Pushover, is intriguing and mysterious.  Burning passion fuels the action, while lust leads to bad decisions.  Or is it the other way around?  The characters struggle to find their way out from under each other’s control, only to run back when they are in need.  Director Kirk Gostkowski guides this small cast of highly skilled actors to dig deep and find the driving impulse that invigorates their character. 

Pearl (played by Di Zhu) is in the first session with her new therapist (played by Christopher Sutton).  She wears white gloves and just came from church.  She is tight with anxiety.  She admits that she is gay, attracted to strong women, and not sure if this new therapist is right for her.  He does get her to take her gloves off and tell him about Evelyn and Soochi. 

The action moves back in time to when Pearl sent Soochi (played by Christina Toth) to a resident resort in New Mexico to deliver a package to Evelyn (played by Rebecca De Mornay).  Evelyn tells Soochi she was excepting her.  Pearl previously contacted Evelyn to tell her that Soochi stole from her.  In the package is a wedding ring that Evelyn gave Pearl with instructions to return it to her if she is ever in need of terminating a relationship.  Evelyn knows what needs to be done, but instead of making Soochi disappear, she puts her to work to earn back the money she stole from Pearl.  When Evelyn visits Pearl to deliver the money, the three women confront one another with their expectations and the hard truth.   

Christopher Sutton, Di Zhu, Rebecca De Morney, & Christina Toth
Photo courtesy of Chain Theatre

Each of the characters have quirks that spark interest.  Pearl is intense and dark.  Evelyn is controlling and self-serving.  Soochi is neurotic and manipulative.  These three actors portray these qualities from their core.  Christina Toth’s Soochi gets more self-destructive as the action progresses.  She is brought to that point by Evelyn’s domination, which Rebecca De Mornay cunningly underplays.  Pearl goes back and forth from victim to persecutor, and Di Zhu plays these shifts with skillful ease.  She is the pushover, constantly being taken advantage of.  She has reached her breaking point; however, it is Evelyn who has the final compelling moment.  It is unexpected, and Rebecca Du Mornay makes it genuine. 

Scenic design by Jackson Berkley makes the Chain Theatre stage feel expansive.  His unit set transforms to different locations with quick changes of furniture.

Chain Theatre continues to build a strong reputation for high quality work with the world premiere of this new John Patrick Shanley play.  It is excellently produced.  

The Pushover has been extended at Chain Theatre through May 2. 

Domenick Danza

Italian American Reconciliation

 Italian American Reconciliation
The Flea Theater
October 18, 2025

Photo courtesy of Italian American Reconciliation

John Patrick Shanley’s rarely produced Italian American Reconciliation is beautifully brought to life at The Flea Theater.  Director Austin Pendleton has gathered an amazing cast to inject passion and perspective into Mr. Shanley’s writing.  The setting and time period ring with authenticity.  The cast captures the rhythms and timing in the dialogue.  It all flows naturally, building the tension and humor in each moment through the characters’ conflicting desires.

Aldo (played by Robert Farrior) tells the story of his best friend, Huey (played by Wade McCollum).  Huey is dating Teresa (played by Mia Gentile).  He is very much in love with her, but feels he needs to break up with her and get back with his ex-wife, Janice (played by Linda Manning).  He feels that when they divorced, she took a part of him, and he needs to get it back.  Huey has a plan and needs Aldo’s help.  Aldo agrees, but has a plan of his own to keep Janice and Huey apart, which he feels is best for both of them. 

Wade McCollum & Robert Farrior
Photo courtesy of Italian American Reconciliation

Robert Farrior opens the show as Aldo, directly addressing the audience.  The tone, pace, and humor of the play are immediately established.  He invites the audience in for the story he wants to tell, and informs them that it has a lesson.  He brings the lesson to a specific conclusion, after experiencing torment throughout the journey.  Mr. Farrior skillfully portrays this inner conflict, while maintaining the humor in Aldo’s perspective.  He brings vibrant life to all his scenes. 

Wade McCollum skillfully portrays the various levels of Huey’s character.  He is meek and broken with a lust for life that is trapped within.  Mr. McCollum finds moments to reveal this inner zeal and strength, keeping the audience connected to his plan to reconcile with his ex-wife.  Linda Manning’s Janice is dark and brooding with an explosive temper.  She reveals different sides of herself in scenes with Huey and Aldo, creating a full and complex character. 

Mia Gentile, Mary Testa, & Robert Farrior
Photo courtesy of Italian American Reconciliation

Mia Gentile plays Teresa with a strong sense of self-awareness, while also needing love and companionship.  These elements come into conflict when the decision she makes to break it off with Huey is turned around when he breaks up with her first.  Luckily, she has Aunt May to talk to.  Mary Testa plays this role to the fullest.  She offers advice and comfort, not only to Teresa, but also to Aldo.  Ms. Testa portrays this character with warmth and wisdom, while also maintaining an edge of skepticism, which magnifies the humor.

This play addresses the messiness of love and the need we all have for it.  It is structured and communicated in a way that is unique to John Patrick Shanley.  It is a beautifully passionate adventure. 

Italian American Reconciliation is playing at The Flea Theater through October 26. 

Domenick Danza

Brooklyn Laundry

Brooklyn Laundry
Manhattan Theatre Club
NY City Center Stage I
February 15, 2024 

Photo courtesy of Manhattan Theatre Club

Manhattan Theatre Club is presenting John Patrick Shanley’s new play, Brooklyn Laundry.  The premise is intriguing, the characters are truthful, and the plot has a few surprise twists.  The play has many honest moments that will touch your heart and endear the characters to you.  The cast is wonderful.  Mr. Shanley has directed this play himself.  It is tender and straight forward. 

Fran (played by Cecily Strong) meets Owen (played by David Zayas) when she drops off her laundry.  The regular girl quit, so Owen, who own three laundromats, is working the front desk.  He sees something in Fran, beyond her “gloomy” disposition, and asks her out.  She accepts, but cannot go until she returns from an out of town commitment.  Fran keeps the details of this commitment from Owen when she goes on their date.  She wants him to see her in a positive light, and not as she is, weighed down by her family sorrow.  Fran’s sister is dying and leaving two small children behind.  Owen carries the weight of his past as well.  Fran supports him, and is hoping he will be able to do the same. 

David Zayas & Cecily Strong
Photo courtesy of Manhattan Theatre Club

Cecily Strong delivers a solid performance as Fran.  This is a complex character, yearning for happiness while drowning in hopelessness.  Her rhythms and timing are impeccable.  She has a phenomenal chemistry with David Zayas.  Their connection is genuine and visceral.  Mr. Zayas’ character emotionally opens and reaches out to Fran (Cecily Strong), then plunges into fear and darkness.  It then becomes her turn to open up and reach out. 

Florencia Lozano and Andrea Syglowski play Fran’s sisters, Trish and Suzie.  These two characters are polar opposites, giving Ms. Strong much to play off.  It is in these scenes that she dives in and fully develops her character.  These relationships reveal the intertwining layers that develop over a lifetime of hardship and connection. 

Brooklyn Laundry is playing at NY City Center Stage I through March 31.  Check it out.  

Domenick Danza

I Am Your Masseuse

 I Am Your Masseuse
The Bridge Production Group
Brooklyn Navy Yards
August 18, 2021 

I Am Your Masseuse is an evening of five short plays by John Patrick Shanley, presented by The Bridge Production Group.  It is part of the Bridge Residency at the Brooklyn Navy Yards Summer Festival.  These five new works are sharp and funny, and produced with an impeccable eye on detail.  Director Claire Edmonds finds every nuance and effective subtext in Mr. Shanley’s writing.  The cast of four skillfully delivers every laugh with biting witticism. 

Photo courtsey of The Bridge Production Group

Mr. Shanley’s characters take deep and unexpected dives in these new works.  Each piece runs about fifteen minutes.  They are smoothy transitioned.  The actors transform and the mood shifts in a matter of minutes.  Each story starts off simply, then evolves as secrets are revealed and desires are devilishly pursued.  Bonds are broken, fears are faced, and connections are forged at a deeper level, leaving the audience laughing, aroused, and, at times, enlightened.  

Marcus Naylor, Crawford M. Collins, Carlo Albán, and Christina Toth are an amazing ensemble.  They each get a chance to pair off in the five different plays, constantly outdoing themselves in each successive piece.  Their character choices are distinct in each work.  Their timing, focus, and chemistry are consistently top notch. 

I Am Your Masseuse runs for one more night (August 22 at 8:00 PM) at the Brooklyn Navy Yard.  Check out The Bridge Production Group’s website for ticket information as well as dates and times for the other shows in their summer festival.  [title of show] runs through August 21.  Get a ticket, make a trip to the Brooklyn Navy Yard, and enjoy a great evening of theatre. 

Domenick Danza

Doubt

Doubt

Studio Theatre

Washington DC

September 29, 2019

Photo courtesy of Studio Theatrer

When John Patrick Shanley wrote Doubt, he was addressing what he felt was a situation bubbling up in America’s mindset.  The need to take a side without all the facts creates a sense of doubt.  His skillful writing for this timely play won him the Pulitzer Prize in 2005.  This underlying theme is more relevant today than when first presented, and the Studio Theatre production is giving audiences in Washington DC the opportunity to experience it with a new perspective.

Christian Conn & Sarah Marshall
Photo courtesy of Studio Theatre

It is 1964 in the Bronx, New York.  When the principal of St. Nicholas School, Sister Aloysius (played by Sarah Marshall), suspects Father Flynn (played by Christian Conn) of wrongdoing, she asks the novice, Sister James (played by Amelia Pedlow), to keep a sharp eye for anything out of the ordinary.  Sister James observes some peculiar behavior by one of the boys in her class, and reports back to Sister Aloysius.  She confronts Father Flynn directly, even though it is highly inappropriate.  Once the floodgates are open, there is no going back.

Sarah Marshall & Tiffany M. Thompson
Photo courtesy of Studio Theatre

Sarah Marshall is strong and rigid as Sister Aloysius.  The confrontation scenes between her and Christian Conn’s Father Flynn are fiery and full of conviction.  They are an even match, which is required in these two characters if this story is going have impact.  Amelia Pedlow portrays Sister James with the right balance of innocence and eagerness to please.  She finds herself caught in the middle of something she does not fully understand, and grows significantly from the experience.  Tiffany M. Thompson plays Mrs. Muller.  She and Sarah Marshall deliver excellent performances in the most striking scene in the play.    

Doubt has been extended at Studio Theatre in Washington DC through October 13.  This play is John Patrick Shanley at his best.

Domenick Danza