TNT’s ‘The Outsider’ pokes fun at all sides
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Like most people, Brett Bunker is exhausted by the endless barrage of political commercials everyone has endured for months.
"I was just thinking about this the other day, about how many political commercials we’ve seen over the last several weeks, and I haven’t seen one issue talked about in the political campaigns," Bunker said. "It’s all performative anymore."
The antidote he's providing is "The Outsider," a comedy by Paul Slade Smith that spoofs the political process. It opens Friday for a three-weekend run at Trumbull New Theatre.
"The Outsider" is a play Bunker has wanted to direct since he first read it.
"Paul is kind of this newer playwright, and he nails comedy on the head," Bunker said. "That's what brought me to this show, just the realization that how close it shows the absurdity of modern politics."
The play is set in a small state where the governor is forced to resign due to a scandal, and most of his staff leaves with him because they were involved in the cover up.
Lt. Gov. Ned Newly, played by Tom Burd, ascends to the top position. He's a talented public servant but a terrible candidate with a fear of the spotlight and public speaking, the antithesis of the politician that thrives in the modern world. Political consultant Arthur Vance (Ron Wolford) tries to turn those liabilities into an asset when Ned faces a special election.
"He (Ned) knows government," Bunker said. "He knows how it works, and he knows how to make sure it works for people ... As Arthur Vance puts it in the show, 'We elect idiots who look like leaders all the time. But this is a new phenomenon -- a leader who looks like an idiot.'
"Tom is a fantastic actor, and I'm pretty sure he can do anything. He does so much with the material, where he can switch from this timid guy clutching a briefcase like a safety blanket to the type of person rattling off exactly what the budget numbers are supposed to be. It’s almost Jerry Lewis-like how he approaches the timid side, the stage fright side of the character, and then just leans right into (the serious side). It’s such a great character for Tom because he gets to really spread his wings."
The rest of the cast includes Mel Lyon, Nina Miller, Chip Lockwood, Caitlyn McKenna and B. David Sloan.
The primary set is the governor's office, and Bunker praised the team that made his set design a reality and filled it with tiny details that capture the location.
There is some political satire and elements of farce, at least a case of mistaken identity, the director said. But the comedy is more dialogue-driven than physical comedy.
"This is all very tongue-in-cheek verbal comedy that is right up my alley with the intellectual side of things and with how smart comedy plays," Bunker said.
He also stressed that it's not a play that takes political sides.
"It doesn’t play left or right," Bunker said. "It goes both directions. It makes fun of everybody. If somebody walks out complaining that it reminds them of or I was poking fun at their candidate or whoever that they liked, I would strongly suggest, 'Well, maybe you need to pull a mirror up to your party, Democrat or Republican, because this is not meant to poke fun at anybody.' It’s meant to poke fun at the entire system and the spectacle that has become politics."
WHAT: "The Outsider”
WHEN: 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday through Nov. 21 and 3 p.m. Nov. 15 and 22
WHERE: Trumbull New Theatre, 5883 Youngstown Warren Road, Niles
HOW MUCH: Tickets are $17 for adults and $15 for students and are available online at trumbullnewtheatre.tix.com and by calling 330-652-1103.
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