Selling their souls for a great role
Schemer: Dave Moss, played by Shanaka Amarasinghe
The play begins with a rather vicious, foul-mouthed monologue delivered to a group of fully grown men, slightly cowering in their seats. This is the scene that thrust Alec Baldwin to notoriety in the film, the scene that is so extensively quoted it’s in a pop culture league of its own. “So no pressure there then,” winks Hans Billimoria, the man tasked with taking on the short lived role of Blake. He has just finished a run through of his five minute cameo and says it doesn’t matter how long you’re on stage for-“you’ve just got to deliver your lines with absolute conviction.”
Downtrodden: George Aaronow, played by Andre Perera
Hans is just one of the eight-member, all male cast from Identities Inc. who will bring to life David Mamet’s Glengarry Glen Ross next week, produced by special arrangement with Samuel French Inc. Director Gehan Blok makes the transition from stage to the director’s chair (or in this case shoes because he doesn’t do too much sitting, this guy) with a fairly high profile production at the Punchi Theatre. Mamet’s play is a critically acclaimed, Pulitzer award winning tale of office politics and vile scheming, as four real estate agents battle with impossible management and each other to close four hopeless leads. It is intended for mature audiences.
“It’s a fantastically competitive work environment,” says Dominic Kellar who takes on the role of Shelly Levine, former salesman extraordinaire down on his luck and getting increasingly desperate. Levine’s track record, formerly so faultless, has taken a beating and rapidly unravels as he struggles to close lead after lead that just won’t go his way. “He can’t keep up with the pace,” says Kellar. “He tries very hard, but nothing works for him.” When each agent is asked to close a lead in the space of a week- or face losing their jobs-Levine decides to take matters into his own hands.
‘Company man’: Williamson, played by Dino Corera
Rajiv Ponweera, on the other hand, is firmly on the winning end; his character is rock star salesman Richard Roma who has been on a slightly disconcerting winning streak for some time. “Roma is your typical salesman,” says Rajiv. “He knows exactly the right thing to say at the right time.” When Rajiv initially read the script “Roma sounded like a salesman with a bit of the Italian-mafia guy in him,” he laughs. “You learn later that appearances may not always tally with reality.” Rajiv met the director on stage at Sashane Perera’s Men Without Shadows and “it’s very easy to work with him,” he says.
Notorious: Blake played, by Hans Billimoria
Then there’s Niren Neydorff, taking on a role as James Lingk, a man who wants to please everyone. Lingk is the unwilling victim of Roma’s sales pitch, and his indecision later on may just cost the superstar salesman his winning deal.
We meet the downtrodden George Aaronow, brought to life with startling alacrity by soft-spoken Andre Perera. Andre can’t decide which side his character is on (is he a good guy or bad apple?) but his complacency doesn’t get Aaronow anywhere. “Aarnow is that character you’d watch from the audience and think-‘I know this guy’,” says Andre. “You know, that one person in an office content to let life and opportunities pass them by.”
And finally, there’s Dave Moss – the eminently unlikeable schemer played by Shanaka Amarasinghe. Moss is frustrated with life, with work, with the world…one of life’s great complainers, “he wants to do something great, but doesn’t actually have the guts to go through with it,” we’re told. “Moss will always find something wrong with the system.” Shanaka, still bemused at forever being cast as the archetype nemesis, is happy to play Moss-“I love my character,” he says simply. “There’s this great scene I have with Andre, and it’s fantastic because Andre has no ego as an actor and it’s a pleasure to work with someone who gives so completely to his role.”
Rock star: Richard Roma, played by Rajiv Ponweera
Desperate: Shelly Levine, played by Dominic Kellar
Dino Corera takes on his first villainous role as Williamson, the ‘company man’ keen to have it his way. Somewhat of a cold fish, Williamson plays no favourites but his dislike of Levine- who attempts to strike a deal with him- may get in the way. “Williamson is a man of rules and protocol,” says Dino. He’s happy to be involved with Identities; “we need more young directors in the circuit,” he points out. “And Blok is a great guy to work with.”
Glengarry debuted in 1983 and since then it has only become more relevant to today’s world, reflects Hans. “We want to sell everything now-our bodies, our relationships, our souls.” The intensity of Mamet’s writing keeps the cast constantly on their toes, adds Andre. “Our challenge is to keep the audience guessing.”
Glengarry Glen Ross goes on the boards at the Punchi Theatre in Borella on July 17, 18, 19 and 20. The play is for mature audiences. Tickets are at Quickee.lk [0117324325/6]