Cocked; But What Happens Next?

There’s a lot to be said about a story that can move with the speed and grace of a cheetah and that is genuinely good. Cocked hit all of its entertainment targets with ease. A couple in Chicago’s trendy Andersonville own a condo above a toxically nasty neighbor. It’s Chicago and it’s Andersonville where unorthodox couples are the norm. The couple is lesbian. One is black. The other white. All good. Except the ex-Marine downstairs who goes out of his way to taunt them with loud military music and a constantly barking dog is not down with the black thing. And probably not the lesbian thing either. So far we’re ringing very true to life.

Taylor (Kelli Simkins), the white half, practices law. Izzie’s (Patrese McClain) journalist covering the city’s endless killing season. Professional and articulate, the language they use between themselves is intelligent, considered, incisive and often amusing enough to provoke a wry smile. Izzie is well aware of the need to get away from the loner and potential killing machine downstairs before he goes Columbine. Taylor is resisting because she’s afraid of taking a bath when they sale the condo.

Enter Taylor’s hilarious but totally nuts brother, Frank (Mike Tepeli). Everybody either has a Frank or knows of one. Can’t keep a job of any kind, knows absolutely everything, has con artist so deeply ingrained in his DNA that he thinks it’s normal and always looking for a handout. And in this case, he could also easily be nicknamed Destructo. Frank’s supposed to be living with Mom in Iowa or someplace but he just pops up at his sister’s for some vague reason secretly packing cold steel.

A good con artist first assesses. Then he ensnares. And finally he acts. That’s Frank. Once he finds out about Mr. Timebomb downstairs, Frank decides to man up and take care of this problem; with the ultimate objective of enriching himself. He instead sets in motion a series of events that puts them all in mortal danger. It’s those events that make up the meat of the play and they are delicious. True suspense descends and saturates the play. Dread and desperation combine and swirl both around and through all of them.   It’s during this escalation of fear that a number of revelations surface which could easily destabilize or even destroy the relationship itself.

The audience as well as the characters are forced to confront the reality of living in a gun culture. As Izzie sees it, the gun debate has already been lost. To survive the losers have to decide whether they will arm themselves to simply survive. Grappling with that decision butts against other realities that are true of many major American cities; particularly Chicago. The discounting or even discrediting of grievances from the black citizenry by the police factors into Izzie’s decision not to seek their help when it would seems absolutely the right thing to do. Cocked brings ugly and unsettling realities to the surface and makes you see them if not confront them. Left with only one recourse to defend yourself against volatile and lethal force, what would you do? That is the ultimate question the play asks and it does so very powerfully and beautifully.

Congratulations to playwright Sarah Gubbins for presenting an aspect of city life you don’t see very often and exposing the the complexity of the commonplace. Using dialogue that is bright and sharp, Gubbins doesn’t blink when true grit is needed to make a point that is both artistic and provocative.

I had one point of confusion. Izzie and Taylor, in their speech, sound perfectly suited to one another. But they don’t look compatible. It’s a question of types; not colors. If their few moments of mild affection looked more sincere on stage it may not have been so concerning. Fortunately, it wasn’t a distraction that hobbled or blighted the production. It simply remained a curiosity.

Both McClain and Simkins melted into their characters beautifully; making it a joy to watch them do their dance of drama. Tepelli’s Frank, like the dowager Countess on Dalton Abbey, got all of the best lines and he delivered them with consummate skill. His Frank was unqualified treat.