The play exploresaspects of sexual intimacy in fairly graphic detail. The story involves twoformer college friends and a prostitute in Amsterdam. Andrew Edwin Voss plays Davis, asuccessful publishing executive who hires a prostitute to cheer up hisdepressed, struggling playwright friend, Matt (played by David Rothrock). Vossand Rothrock are roommates in real life, which should only add to theproduction. It’s one thing to go over lines at formal rehearsals; it’s anotherthing to have spontaneous discussions about the play during idle moments athome. Voss and Rothrock also studied together at UW-Milwaukee, so thefamiliarity between the characters should be very natural. This is essential toa script so focused on aspects of human intimacy.
The same offstagefamiliarity that works to the advantage of Voss and Rothrock is going to be aninteresting challenge for Tess Cinpinski, who plays the prostitute. Cinpinskialso studied with Voss and Rothrock at UWM, which means she’s going to have totry to distance herself in order to bring across the mystery that serves as thecentral conflict of the story. The approachable yet exotic beauty ofCinpinski’s stage presence (as witnessed in last year’s production of David’s Redhaired Death) will go a longway toward establishing some of that mystery.
The show is beingdirected by Youngblood co-founder Benjamin James Wilson, who is also working onthe script for Youngblood’s next show.
Youngblood’s Red Light Winter runs Jan. 21 – Feb. 6at the Alchemist Theatre in Bay View.
