Like corners of my mind

The Drawer Boy

Through April 13

Directed by Marshall W. Mason

Pittsburgh…

The Drawer Boy

Through April 13

Directed by Marshall W. Mason

Pittsburgh Public Theater

(412) 316-8200

The Pittsburgh Public Theater’s “The Drawer Boy” is an engaging three-person show. Playwright Michael Healey’s award-winning script explores the lives of a “farm boy” and a “drawer boy.” As we learn about their present tasks of milking and planting, their past is slowly revealed in ways that are both heartwarming and comedic.

In the summer of 1972, on a farm in Ontario, Canada, we meet bachelor farmers Angus and Morgan. Suffering from an old war injury, Angus is no longer able to remember everyday simple things. He is unable to recall the names of household appliances and he forgets names seconds after learning them. But surprisingly, Angus has an amazing ability to calculate and retain numerical figures. Morgan, a no-nonsense elbow-grease kind of guy with a sharp sense of humor, runs the farm. Together, Angus keeps the books and Morgan does most of the labor.

On an average day at the farm, a young man named Miles comes strolling down the path. Wearing a pink, bell-sleeved shirt, sandals, and carrying a crocheted, multi-colored knapsack, he approaches Angus and inquires if they need an extra hand around the farm. By appearance alone it is clear that Miles is a city boy who knows nothing about farming. He then explains that he is actually an actor doing research for a play about farmers. Morgan agrees to let him lend a hand and show him the inside secrets of being a farmer. Playing on the boy’s naivete, Morgan makes Miles wash gravel stones and informs him that cows are under extreme pressure to produce the most milk and avoid being eaten. After spending an afternoon in the barn, Miles does his theatrical impression of a mooing, stressed-out cow.

While receiving tons of facts about the mechanics of farming, some a little truer than others, Miles has not yet found anything to add to his stage production – no one was convinced that cows are really petrified. But one night, he overhears Morgan retelling Angus the story of their lives and their experiences in the war. Without asking permission, Miles uses the story as a monologue in his play. What follows is a touching struggle as Angus tries to remember his life, triggered by Miles’s performance, and Morgan tries desperately to protect him from the truth.

This three-person cast is tremendous. They create lovable characters that carry us along in their journey of self-discovery.

Angus is played by Jimmie Ray Weeks, an actor with theater, film and television credits to his name. His portrayal of Angus weaves together a childlike sweetness, as Angus counts stars and makes sandwiches, and an intense vulnerability as he wakes up nights searching through drawers and cabinets for something not even he can describe.

Morgan, played by veteran actor Tom Atkins, takes care of Angus. He never loses patience with him even as Morgan stands bleeding and Angus brings him everything but the towel he requested. In Morgan we see slight hints of the ornery boy he once was. Atkins brings to this character the essence of a man who has seen too much but carries on in spite of it.

Add Jamie Bennett’s portrayal of an eager young actor ready to lend a helping, but sometimes unwanted, hand and the three create a tender comedy that explores friendship, the past, farm life and youth versus old age through the emotional story of the “farm boy” and the “drawer boy.”