EASY TO STAY 'FULLY COMMITTED' DESPITE PACE.Byline: Julio Martinez Julio Martinez is the weekly host of KPFK Radio’s Arts in Review, is a theatre critic for Daily Variety and Features Editor of Latin Heat Magazine. His articles have appeared in Los Angeles Times Magazine, The Hollywood Reporter, Backstage West, L.A. Correspondent It is a contradictory but well-documented fact that an individual's escalation up the social ladder is often accompanied by an equally escalating insecurity that this individual won't be correctly honored for his or her acquired entitlement. Nowhere is this phenomenon more distilled than in the ``see and be seen'' world of New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of City's au courant Cou`rant´ a. 1. (Her.) Represented as running; - said of a beast borne in a coat of arms. n. 1. A piece of music in triple time; also, a lively dance; a coranto. 2. high-end eateries. In a devastatingly accurate and hilarious one-person romp, written by Becky Mode and directed by Nicholas Martin, Mark Setlock Mark Setlock (born on June 26, 1968 in Cleveland, Ohio) is an American actor. He was the youngest of an Italian-Polish family. Some notable roles of his include Rent and Smokey in New Suit he also co-wrote Fully Committed portrays out-of-work actor Sam, whose day job consists of handling the ever- ringing bank of reservation phone lines at Gothom's latest four-star bistro. Playwright Mode, who once worked alongside Setlock taking reservations at the once chic but now defunct Bouley in New York, certainly knows the territory. All the pretensions and realities of high dining are underscored with a laser-like wit and intensity. Director Martin wisely keeps the pace going on a fast-moving treadmill, never dwelling on any character or situation for too long, yet always under Setlock's control. Roaming about James Noone's awe-inspiring restaurant basement setting, Setlock seamlessly segues (at often lightning speed) between his earnest Sam persona and more than 30 high-end, status-obsessed creeps and cretins not used to taking ``no'' for an answer. He also portrays all the restaurant's flamboyant staff, including its vicious, megalomaniacal meg·a·lo·ma·ni·a n. 1. A psychopathological condition characterized by delusional fantasies of wealth, power, or omnipotence. 2. An obsession with grandiose or extravagant things or actions. chef and pretentious-to-the-hilt maitre d'hotel, Jean Claude. Sam, who is barely able to handle all the rapid-fire reservations traffic, must also deal with his retired, ``okey-dokey'' Midwestern dad's gentle pleas that he come home for Christmas, patronizing calls from a fellow actor who got a call-back on an HBO Hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBO) A form of oxygen therapy in which the patient breathes oxygen in a pressurized chamber. Mentioned in: Ozone Therapy special that Sam was up for, and less than satisfying chats with his agent's personal assistant who feels that Sam's auditions ``convey a lack of entitlement.'' Setlock nails every personality with an amazing honesty and consistency. Though this unnamed Manhattan dining establishment, which specializes in ``global fusion'' cuisine, is usually booked months in advance, Sam is commanded to never say that reservations are completely booked, only ``fully committed (Law) committed to prison for trial, in distinction from being detained for examination. See also: Fully .'' In an amazing display of emotional control, Sam actually exhibits an impressive facility at dealing calmly with a menagerie of demanding and insulting personalities, including irate octogenarians, a monumentally demanding supermodel's assistant, an ominous-sounding Mafioso, a hysterical socialite and a plethora of others. Is there a level of debasement Debasement 1. To lower the value, quality or status of something or someone. 2. To lower the value (of a coin) by adding metal of inferior value. Notes: In other words, debasement is the degrading of the value of something or character of someone. to which Sam cannot be driven? The test comes when an ``unfortunate accident'' has occurred in the women's restroom just as restaurant guru Tim Zagat's wife is headed for the facility. All the busboys are suddenly nowhere to be found and guess who has been commanded to clean it up? From this point on, the work moves to a wonderfully creative conclusion that gives evidence of Sam's innate ability to survive and overcome. The production's sense of time and place is enhanced greatly by the lighting and sound designs of Frances Aronson and Bruce Ellman, respectively. ``FULLY COMMITTED'' Where: The Coronet Theatre The Coronet Theatre is a longstanding Los Angeles theatre. Many Hollywood stars have played there, and it has been home to several important premiere productions. More than 300 plays have been produced at the Coronet. , 366 N. La Cienega There are at least three places with the name La Cienega (from the Spanish La Ciénaga: swampland, marsh or bog): CAPTION(S): photo Photo: Mark Setlock stars in the one-man play ``Fully Committed.'' |
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