Dirt Nap, Don’t Hit Snooze on This One

by Stephen Kreal

On Friday November 28th, I attended the opening night performance of “Dirt Nap” at Playmasters Theater Workshop, in Bensalem PA, located in Neshaminny State Park. The play was originally published in 2019, and has been characterized by many as a “dark comedy.” The action of the play is set in 1998, in the Nevada desert outside of Las Vegas with the opening scenes taking place in Trenton NJ. The play was directed by Rich Hall and stage-managed by William Lawler bringing a nice-size audience in attendance. 

The opening two scenes take place right in front of the stage (perhaps to emphasize that these scenes were not in the desert). Both scenes were two characters sitting on a park bench having conversations. Due to the fact that the action was not on the stage, these scenes were somewhat difficult to see. Using more than a single spotlight to highlight this scene would have probably been a better choice. These opening scenes introduced four of the main characters in two separate conversations. 

First, we are introduced to Levi Burnett (Frank Zerns) and his friend/”sidekick” Alex Reynolds (Mark Stanoslavov), making his first play appearance.  Levi is a modern-day wanna-be Indiana Jones, who dreams of big adventures in the desert, specifically, digging up the bodies of murder victims outside of Las Vegas. Zerns’ enthusiasm and energy read well in this character. He had fantastic comedic timing and his costuming was spot-on, looking exactly like the iconic movie archeologist. Costuming credit is given in the program to the cast.  

Stanslavov’s fast-talking and loud Alex was hesitant to join his buddy on the adventure, being rightfully frightened of mob activity. His vocal tones portrayed his fear and neurosis well, and he was particularly humorous when captured by the two gangsters. Stanslavov’s costume choices also helped set the tone for this character.  

Next, we meet the gangsters “Mucky” Joe Salvino and Leo “Rat Bastard” Gallo,  portrayed by Terry Scullion and Paul McCarthy respectively. They both came off as your typical mobsters, both in the way they were dressed, in the way they behaved, and their jargon. While somewhat cliche, this worked for these particular characters. I would have liked to see more chemistry between these two gentlemen. In fairness, we learned on our way out that Scullion was a late addition to the cast, so perhaps with more time together, this would have been mitigated. 

We are also introduced to Jimmy Vino in the opening scene, the mob boss who is assigning Joe and Leo to the desert. This role, played by Mike McCollum, was a small but mighty role. He was only present in this one scene, but very memorable. 

The action of the play is then transported to the desert outside of Las Vegas. Levi is brimming with enthusiasm and excitement as he begins his quest for mob-murder victims. The dialogue between Alex and Levi was whimsical and helped set the tone of their goofy friendship. I particularly enjoyed Levi’s unbridled enthusiasm playing against Mark’s worries about being discovered. 

The main stage set was a desert scene, with the backdrop nicely painted with buttes and sand. There were Saguaro cacti painted on the backdrop. In the middle there was an earthen mound, which we later find out is a burial site, much to the delight of Levi. The set, (construction credited to Joe Szumila, Bob Clothier, Kathy Garofano, and Rich Hall; artwork credited to Melissa Simmons, Chris Simmons and Rich Hall), was well-lit and painted nicely. However, I feel it had a two-dimensional quality which perhaps could have been offset by a prop cactus or two. There was also an old-school pay phone upstage. After researching I found out that pay phones in remote places, while rare, were a thing in times past. The phone prop itself was quite impressive. There was no credit given for props in the program.

It is here that we are introduced to our last two characters. Beth Harrison, Alex’s fiance, was played by Lisa Cardinal. She pulled off the frightened, worrisome partner, while being fun to watch. Her costume choices worked well for her character, and she projected well, where we had no issues hearing her despite not having a body mic.

Jessie Ryan, portrayed by Melissa Black-Simmons, was a reporter, brought in to tempt Levi, while documenting the events. Black-Simmons attempted to bring the sharp-wit required for this character. She also made good costume decisions for her character, and projected and enunciated well.

The direction felt a bit static at times. During one lengthy conversation, the cast was standing in a diagonal line conversing with no movement. The character development and purpose during some scenes was underdeveloped. The lack of chemistry between characters could have been further developed with some additional character work. While some might say a silly comedy doesn’t require the same type of character work a drama might require, it is my opinion that it is even more important in comedy for the humor to land.

Scene changes were minimal, and stage manager William Lawler kept everything moving smoothly and without any hitches. The lighting and sound design and cues were also well executed and fitting for the overall feel of the show. Lights and sound are credited to Rich Hall and William Lawler, and Sound Design was credited to Bob Clothier.

As we saw this show on opening night, which was also on the tail of Thanksgiving, I do believe that the show will only get better and better with each performance. I encourage you to go see the show, for some lighthearted fun and laughs, running through December 14th. Tickets are available here:  https://playmasters.booktix.com/