Alchemist's Insightful 'Back and Forth'

The man who wrote Rudolph the Pissed-Off Reindeer delves a little deeper this time around. Patrick Schmitz's latest effort, Back and Forth, exhaustively explores the nature of the theater business in a heavily researched comedic drama. Culled from Schmitz's interviews with 75 people involved in local theater, the dialogue is brimming with insight.

The play is set backstage at a theater in a Wisconsin town. Josh Decker stars as a young actor who has been called to audition for a production company in Los Angeles. During the penultimate performance of an exceptionally bad murder-mystery, he engages various members of the cast in a discussion about the nature of theater today.

With dialogue stemming from actual people, it's easy to forget that the play isn't an actual backstage discussion about theater. Schmitz nicely renders the characters, but their personalities still would get lost in all of the discussion were it not for the cast.

The ensemble does a really good job of guiding one's focus to the emotional reality behind the conversation. Amie Lynn Losi charmingly plays the emotional heart of local actors as a woman who has been working in the same town for a great many years. Beth Lewinski puts in a nuanced performance as a talented stage comic making her first foray into standard full-cast theater. Michael Black puts in a promising performance as a hotshot young actor with contemporary sensibilities that are at odds with those of a charismatic, classically trained local actor played with gravitas by Parker Cristan.

Back and Forthcontinues through March 27 at the Alchemist Theatre. To reserve tickets, call 414-426-4169.