I’ve never been particularly interested in watching men have sex
with each other, but—here is something I NEVER thought I would
say—Portland Center Stage’s new show had the unexpected effect of
making me reconsider my pornography viewing habits.
The Little Dog Laughed is a pointed little play about a
hunky, closeted starlet, Mitchell (Brik Berkes. Brik!), forced to
choose between his boyfriend and his career. The forcing is done by his
agent, the wolf-in-cougar’s clothing Diane (Antoinette LaVecchia), who
is unapologetic in her insistence that coming out will destroy
Mitchell’s shot at Hollywood success. Alex (Dennis Flanagan), the
boyfriend, works as a callboy and has some emotional baggage of his
own.
The relationship between Mitchell and Alex is woefully
underdeveloped—some steamy makeout scenes serve as shorthand for
emotional connection, which, okay, is still pretty fun to watch. And if
Douglas Carter Beane’s script seems too quippy at times (Mitchell had
his first gay experience in Boy Scouts, where he earned “the merit
badge that dare not speak its name”), at least most of the quips are
genuinely funny: This is entertaining stuff, on a beat-by-beat level,
and Beane has a few narrative tricks up his sleeve that unfold slyly in
the play’s final scenes. If the show doesn’t exactly revolutionize the
discourse about homosexuality in Hollywood, it at the very least
cleverly lies some bald truths on the table.
Berkes turns in a solid performance as the rumpled, affable
Mitchell, but Flanagan as Mitchell’s twinkie boyfriend has an
irritating, butter-wouldn’t-melt quality that is either the result of a
bad character decision or bad acting. Meanwhile, LaVecchia’s
performance as Diane is a waste of a great part. LaVecchia and Flanagan
could take a few lessons from Natalie Knepp, who, as Alex’s best friend
and sometimes lover, balances self-awareness, cynicism, and
vulnerability and makes it look easy.
Finally, Casi Pacilio’s clunky sound design caters to the lowest
common denominator, leaving little room for subtlety or interpretation,
an unfortunate bit of heavy-handedness in what is generally a sharp,
intelligently designed production.