The Dumb Waiter

Tony Frankel, critic from from Stage and Cinema here. In the "What were they thinking?" department, this Dumb Waiter was placed not in Harold Pinter's England, but in Depression-Era America. The dialogue, such as words like "lorry," are therefore rendered incongruous. The setting for the one-act is GREAT, but within 30 seconds, we know there will be little nuance from the actors and once they start speaking in "American" dialect, this version becomes tension-free, boring and downright infuriating. This outing has SHOWCASE written all over it - if the creators had put as much thought into the production as they did into their thesis of a press release, we may have had something. Really, avoid this one at all costs.... full review

I'm not quite sure I saw the same show as the posts below, because I thought this performance was a true display of great theatre. The acting was superb; both actors showed a great grasp of their characters and the relationship between them. The design and overall feel of the show engaged the audience from the second we stepped into the space. Overall, I thought the whole production was a success. ... full review

Presented in the round- right on the stage- director Landon Johnson’s production of Harold Pinter’s play, The Dumb Waiter, was unique, captivating, and at times, a little maddening. Set in the basement of an abandoned cafe, Ben (Jordan Randall) and Gus (Kristopher Lee Bicknell) are two hit men waiting on their next assignment. With his type-A personality and word economy, Ben is clearly the one in charge and knows more about the job than he lets on to the charmingly aloof Gus. Randall and Bicknell are cast perfectly in their roles- wonderfully subtle and believable in such a close proximity. Brilliantly designed by Matthew G. Hill, no detail is left out. The set (comprised of a bed, chair and dumbwaiter in the basement) and costume... full review