Stephen Adly Guirgis’s street play, set in a working-class New York, is his tenth so far and makes its UK debut at Hampstead Theatre’s main house, directed by Michael Longhurst.
Between Riverside and Crazy uses broad characters and frequent profanity within a plot that looks at adversity, duplicity, and addiction through a strong first act and a second, which tilts into magic realism.
Danny Sapani takes the lead role of Walter “Pops” Washington, a former NYC cop who now wallows in self-pity, bitterness, and grief, all washed down by too much whisky and framed by an unseasonal Christmas tree.
Eight years ago, he was shot, off-duty, by a white cop. This, and the death of his wife, have left him on the edge of life, filling his desirable flat with his son’s criminal acquaintances and dubious girlfriend.
Junior (Martins Imhangbe) seems a habitual wrongdoer, with a strained relationship with Pops. Better, on the surface, is the dynamic between addict Oswaldo (Sebastian Orozco), who seeks a substitute parent, and Lulu (Tiffany Gray in a solid stage debut) who is more fragile than she appears.
Into this messy world – enhanced by Max Jones‘s set of fading rooms, graffiti, and highwalk – enter Pops’s old partner on the beat, Audrey (Judith Roddy) and her cop fiancé, Dave (Daniel Lapaine).
Both white, they feign a duty of care to one of their own, but see this old black man as an inconvenience and embarrassment. Settle your demand for compensation, they counsel, before you become a statistic turfed out into the street.
The first half of Between Riverside and Crazy is very talky, introducing the relationships and slowly teasing in the back story. It raises hackles and asks questions.
In a play where no one is who they seem, this sets you up for the revelations and humour of the second half, particularly when the Church Lady (Ayesha Antoine) arrives with her promise to heal.
There is a lot to admire in the easy, tight vernacular, which pushes character interactions along. Although some cast members could speak up a little, Guirgis keeps up with him for most of the plot, despite the ending being more fizzle than fire.
Between Riverside and Crazy is a play that I enjoyed, but the direction it took was a little perplexing.
Sapani is superb, as he was in the Almeida Lear a few months ago. But overall, for me, I wanted more rage than rasp from these people by the end.
***
Between Riverside and Crazy is at Hampstead Theatre until 15 Jun with tickets here.
Image credit: Johan Persson