Brain of gold

Posted June 28, 2018

By Isthmus Review

Katie Reiser, Isthmus | June 28, 2018

Born Yesterday began its run at American Players Theatre on June 23, and it was a perfect evening to take in Garson Kanin’s comedy. No rain and lack of oppressive heat were nature’s gifts. And effective high-percentage DEET bug repellant was a gift from APT.

When considering Born Yesterday, most people, myself included, will immediately think of the 1950 Oscar-winning movie featuring an indelible performance from Judy Holliday. Or maybe the 1993 movie starring Melanie Griffith in a more delible performance, but Kanin's play, on which those films are based, ran on Broadway from 1946-49 (with two revivals in recent decades).

All of the action takes place in an opulent hotel suite in Washington, D.C., in 1946. Uncouth business tycoon Harry Brock (David Daniel), who got his start in the junkyards of Plainfield, New Jersey, has descended upon the nation’s capital with his henchman-cousin-bartender Eddie (Josh Krause, bringing a shifty-eyed feral quality to the role) and sketchy attorney Ed Devery (John Taylor Phillips, reminding me of a boozy David Axelrod). Also in tow is Harry's longtime girlfriend, former chorus girl Billie Dawn (Colleen Madden). Brock's long game is to influence a Southern senator (James Ridge) to remove onerous regulations that would prohibit him from plundering post-World War II Europe’s scrap iron cache.

Although Harry is brash and boorish, he begins to view Billie’s apparent lack of intellect as a liability that could create roadblocks in his corrupt money grab. When Harry is interviewed by journalist Paul Verrall (Reese Madigan) for a newspaper profile, he decides that Verrall would make an excellent tutor for Billie. It turns out that Billie is smarter than everyone in the room. That’s due to her natural curiosity and appetite for acquiring knowledge. Ultimately, she becomes hip to Brock and Devery’s nefarious plans that include deceptive maneuvers to use her to shield his wealth from scrutiny and defraud the government.


Read the full review here!