Desert Rats by Nate Rufus Edelman

By Joe Straw

Set off a squalid alameda, the entryway to the motel room was a green and white door. It had been sanded and painted many times over the years, but was now left to deteriorate into disrepair by its owners.  

This was just a room that serves to collect money from anyone passing by – heading north to Las Vegas or south to Los Angeles. It is a perfect holiday gift for someone who couldn’t give two squeezes about the drab motif just to lower the eyelids for a brief respite.

This hotel sat beyond the salted palisades of the hills to the north. And probably what you would expect for the desert, in Barstow, and certainly not four stars.

The rest of the room wasn’t that much better, coming in through the door was a bed to the right with a blanket, used repeatedly over the years, no doubt, and one that didn’t cover the whole bed.  The bed frame sat over scraps of frayed carpeting, and in offsetting colors of red, spotted brown, and red again.

The lamps were in need of repair and offered little light to those who wanted to make logical sense. It was actually perfect lighting because the darkness will shed little light on a crime they are about to commit, a crime derived from depravity and, of course, diabolical in nature.   

Frank (Walt Gray IV) stepped into the room with a sense of fondness having been there years before with his father and younger brother, Jesse (Derek Chariton).  They are orphans and have been so for quite some time.

The similarity they have to Frank and Jesse James are the first names only and a criminal mindset.

Frank is the wiser primogeniture, a little heavier than his unfed homunculus brother Jesse, a ruffled haired young man, slightly slow in thought and build, who now wants to chain smoke his way to death, and play solitaire while he waits for the nicotine to kick in and the cancer cells to replicate. (Please, theatrical cigarettes would be a pleasing gesture for those of us who inhaled second hand smoke of our now deceased loved ones.)

What does Jesse have to live for besides cigarettes, booze, and relentless desire to stifle any movement in a positive direction?

It doesn’t help that Frank calls him a retard, an unwelcome, unhelpful, and unkind act.

But Frank isn’t that dumb, in fact he is very curious about a lot of things, has questions that are not easily answered, and may, in fact, be smarter than his older brother, who in reality, forgets a lot.

But, they know what they are there for.  They are prepared for any outcome, and any unforeseen circumstances that may come their way.  The only problem is that neither is bright enough to see beyond the barren landscape, their thoughts beyond the dirty window, and the hot air that forces them inside on this hot dusty day to talk over plans.

And there is no Jacuzzi or air conditioning.

The plan is set, Frank leaves Barstow to drive to the San Fernando Valley to kidnap cheerleader, Amber (Lila Gavares), a spunky girl with a rich father, bring her back in the trunk of the car in a few hours, pick up some Payday candy bars along the way, and return her back to the hotel before they call her father for the ransom.

But there is a kink in the plan; Frank does not arrive until well after his anointed time sending Jesse into the stratosphere with worry.

Options are the key to Nate Rufus Edelman’s dark comedy. There seems to be more in the play than what was presented visually. Desperation drives each of the character to their anointed end in this intimate play.   But does the play go far enough, or reach a  pinnacle?

Frank wants the money. Jesse wants to be loved.  Amber wants to escape the nightmare she is in.  It’s all pretty simple.  But, what happens? Frank doesn’t get the money.  Jesse ruins everything. And the girl seems to be better off in the end.

The plan was doomed from the start.  There were too many obstacles.  The characters need a moment to think when things go wrong.   Frank and Jesse didn’t give a second thought to what they were doing and how they were going to carry it off.  

While Angie Scott’sdirection was fluid enough, the two actors lost sight of their objective from the moment they entered the room.  They weren’t relating (on this night) or moving toward their objectives. (Harold Clurman calls this the through-line.) Later, we get to know why they are there but, but by this time, some momentum was lost.  The relationship of the two brothers needs strengthening, (improvisation in rehearsals would help) and was not significant enough to ensure they would agree or disagree on the same plan.  And, the plan did not have a strong conflict, whether it was inner conflict or from some outside forces, and visually it doesn’t appear that the brothers have run out of options

This play bares a striking similarity to Orphans by Lyle Kessler about two orphans who kidnap a stranger that gets the better of the orphans.

There is a lot to enjoy from Lila Gavares’s (Amber) performance. Her delivery is sultry, nuanced, and her objective is clear. The moment she steps into the room there is an ambiguity coming through the pillowcase that is over her face. Is she laughing, or crying, or both?  Whatever she was doing, it was mesmerizing. Gavares is a rutilant being, focused on both her backstory and complete in the present.  The work was excellent.

Derek Charitonplays Jesse, a simpleton, who believes what his brother tells him about his intellect.  There is a deeper backstory to this character and a much richer defined character.  Staying incognito during the first part of the play would help his character who only smokes and plays solitaire, two passive choices that don’t take the character to another level.  Defining the relationship with his brother will only help the very satisfying ending.

Could that be that his brother wants him to be discovered?

Walt Gray IV is Frank, the older and smarter brother, or at least he thinks so. Frank needs a deeper backstory and subtext.  And stronger choices need to be made.  If he is indeed smarter, he must know his plan is never going to work. And, if that’s the case, what does he want from his brother? Frank tells his brother not to leave the cabin, or to get cigarettes. or a fan, yet he knows full well that he will do it. And why does he present his brother with horrific news upon coming back late at night?  Where does this take us, and how does this change their relationship? Why does he bring the girl back into their hotel room knowing his brother is going to mess things up? How does that change the story?

Desperation and manipulation are social construct keys for Frank. Let’s assume that he is not in this for the money, and that he is doing this to get rid of his brother who has been a ball and chain around his neck his whole life.  Over the course of the play, that version made a lot more sense to me. But that’s just me.

This show was moved from a smaller venue into one of the smaller venues at LATC.  But, that room was probably larger so the actors had to accommodate to the size of the room. At times Frank and Jesse were center stage and in the dark during crucial moments of the play.

That said, I did enjoy the show and I would like to see the players grow exponentially during the course of the run.

Wonderful Set Design by Cameron Mock & Emily MacDonald.

Libby Letlow was responsible for the Fight and Intimacy Choreographer.  The first kiss should be an eye opener for Jesse.  Take that moment.

Other members of the crew are as follows:

Ivan Robles – Sound Design

Robert Anaya – Production Assistant

Jakelinne Gonzalez – Costume Design

Maricela Shagun – Production Stage Manager

Michelle Tapia – Assistant Director

Christopher Campbell-Orrock – Dramaturg

Run! Run! And take somebody thin, with a lot of tattoos!

The Los Angeles Theatre Center
Avalos Theatre
514 S. Spring Street
Los Angeles, CA  90013

Reservation: 866-811-4111


 Contact info@thelatc.org for more information.