When I consider Asylum Theaterâs production of Burn This, first and foremost in my mind are the stinging moments when the sassy roommate character, Larry (Michael J. Teufel), flounced onstage like gay men in the â90s were expected to flounce, and the audience exploded with laughter. Those laughs hit me like needles and trapped me in a mire of disbeliefâare we still doing this? Iâm still stewing, and wondering if Asylumâs production can be responsible for the reactions of their audience to a 1987 work by Lanford Wilson, a gay playwright.
This particular Wilson play was revived this past spring in New York with a cast that included Hollywoodâs âmost intense guyâ right now, Adam Driver, as Paleâthe bereaved, homophobic older brother of Larryâs former roommate, Robbie. Itâs easy to picture Driver being attracted to a role that would allow him to rocket between coked-up visions of grandeur and gut-wrenching sorrow. This too is true of the Asylum productionâs Pale (Heath Koerschgen), who embodies the character wonderfullyâin that Iâm going to be terrified of Pale for the rest of my life.
Initially, Burn This appears to be a story of mourning (everyoneâs mourning Robbie), but I would argue the actual point is the fury and frightening force that Koerschgen must unearth for his role. Is this a story, an exercise, or a pedestal for male rage? In the face of it, all the other characters recede. Thatâs unfortunate, because Iâve liked the actors playing Anna (Briana Ratterman) and Burton (Jason Maniccia) in other projects. Paleâs dominance could also be a commentary on how we all step lightly around rage-filled men and why itâs so damn advantageous for them to behave this way.