Green

Cold call

PHOTO/AMY BECK

Dead Man’s Cell Phone

At the risk of sounding like a Luddite, I’ll admit I came almost kicking and screaming by to my smartphone. You see, everyJessica Santina one I knew, including my husband, stared at the damn things at every 4 opportunity—at the dinner table, in meetings, while lying in bed at night, and even while I was actually in the middle of saying something to them. How could something designed to TheatreWorks of connect people be the instrument of

Northern Nevada such disconnection? Needless to say, presents Dead Man’s I eventually succumbed to the

Cell Phoneat the Laxalt Auditorium in iPhone and must now make a conthe Nelson Building, certed effort every day to keep it in 401 W. Second St. my purse at dinner time.

Remaining dates: But I felt a sense of kinship as IMarch 23 and 24 at 8 p.m., and March 25 at 2 p.m. Tickets: $12 watched TheatreWorks of Northern Nevada’s opening night performance General/$10 students of Sarah Ruhl’s play Dead Man’s and seniors. For more Cell Phone. In Ruhl’s whimsical information, visit www.twnn.org or call 284-0789. style, the story teases out all the various philosophies of cell phone

1

FOUL

2

FAIR

3

GOOD

4

WELL-DONE

5

SUBLIMEDON’T MISS usage—connectedness, avoidance, gateway to another, potentially better life—with lovable, though somewhat bizarre, characters.

The lights come up on a somewhat homely woman sitting by herself at a café corner table, licking the remnants of a bowl of soup. She puts the bowl down and begins doing some work when a phone rings. And rings. Irritated by the distraction, she looks up and politely asks the gentleman at the table nearby, whose back is to the audience, if he’d kindly answer it. He gives no response. After much incessant ringing, the woman finally gets up to talk to him. But she can’t, because he’s dead. So she answers his phone.

By doing so, the woman, Jean (played by Jamie Woodham Plunkett), is drawn into the mysterious world of the deceased Gordon Gottlieb (Mike Austin). Jean, who seems until now to have been pretty lonely and aimless, is immediately seized with a beguiling sense of purpose: She will single-handedly give peace to Gordon’s spirit and to the loved ones he leaves behind.

I found Plunkett’s portrayal of Jean to be utterly loveable and identifiable, and this is where Ruhl’s writing shines. For instance, when Jean ruminates on the nature of cell phones—why she’s unable to resist each ring of Gordon’s phone, while never having wanted a phone for herself—she says, “If your phone is on, you’re supposed to be there. Sometimes I like to disappear. But it’s like, when everyone has their cell phones on, no one is there. It’s like we’re all disappearing the more we’re there.”

Exactly.

But then, the play takes on a sort of Hitchcock-ian quality. Jean is swept into strange family drama involving Gordon’s cold mother, Mrs. Gottlieb (Debi Braat); his estranged wife, Hermia (Bernadette Garcia); his lonely brother, Dwight (also played by Austin); and his femme fatale mistress (also Garcia). Not to mention Gordon’s strange, shady business. It feels a bit like North by Northwest when Jean soon finds herself in a surreal, dangerous situation that spirals out of control.

Then, unfortunately, the play takes a turn toward the mystical. We hear voices from beyond, get an alternate vision of the afterlife, have a sickeningly sweet reincarnation scene and, in short, make a complete left turn from where we’ve started. Which left me, in the end, unsure of what to make of the story.

I liked it, though. I immensely enjoyed Ruhl’s comedic writing, and what it has to say about our relationships and our overreliance on technology. I found Holly Natwora’s direction impeccable. There was solid acting by all—especially Plunkett. And production details like background sound convey mood wonderfully. But the story still left me scratching my head a bit. Ω

Mike Austin, as a dead man, and Jamie Woodham Plunkett, as a living woman, rehearse scenes from Dead Man's Cell Phone.

Killer combo

Angelica’s Italian and Mexican Restaurant

683 N. McCarran Blvd., Sparks, 351-1750

When I heard there was a restaurant serving both Mexican and Italian food, I was eager to see how it would come together, so my friend Brett and I headed out to Angelica’s on a Saturday night to give it a try. We were greeted promptly by a smiling hostess who told us we could sit wherever we would like. When the hostess brought the menus, I was impressed by the options. The menu is divided into sections offering traditional Italian and Mexican dishes ranging from cioppino to chimichangas. Avery friendly waitress—who ended up being Beatriz Pico, the owner of Angelica’s—brought us a basket of warm chips and spicy salsa, and took our drink orders. Brett went with Pacifico ($3.50) and I went with a glass of the house Cab ($5). Angelica’s doesn’t have much as far as wine choices, but they also have a full bar and quite a few beer choices so you won’t leave thirsty. For entrées, I ordered the gnocchi a la gorgonzola ($11.99). The large serving came with slices of chicken and lots of flavorful mushrooms. The potato gnocchi was soft and filling, covered with a nice layer of rich gorgonzola cream sauce that didn’t overwhelm the flavor of the dish. The gnocchi also came with a side of garlic bread which was basically just a few slices of poorly toasted sourdough

with a little garlic butter. However, since I’d already eaten so many chips, by I didn’t mind skipping the bread. K.J. Sullivan Brett ordered the chili verde ksullivan@ ($9.99), which arrived with a large newsreview.com serving of pork covered in tomatillo sauce, rice and beans, and a side of tortillas. The sauce had a nice tang and wasn’t overly spicy and the chunks of pork were fairly tender. While the beans were tasty, the rice was undercooked and still crunchy. Still, it was a good dish overall. We ended the meal with a piece of the flourless chocolate cake ($4.50). The cake was amazingly rich and chocolaty, with a raspberry sauce cascading over the sides. This was rich enough to split but so good you won’t want to. Midway through our meal, the friendly owner came back over and brought more wine for me and another beer for Brett with apologies that the meal had taken so long to come out. I didn’t think the food really took that long, plus the place was fairly busy, but I always appreciate free alcohol. I thought it showed how much the owner cared about keeping customers happy. She may be young, but she has already learned an important concept: a liquored up customer is a happy customer. Unfortunately what the second glass of wine couldn’t do was make me get over the atmosphere. Angelica’s is located in an old Arby’s, and by old Arby’s, I mean Arby’s circa 1975. The orange booths, wood paneling and brownish-orange tiled counter remains and had me looking around for the roast beef. Alarge wine rack is now on the former ordering counter blocking the kitchen from the dining area. There was Italian music playing in the background and some Tuscan themed pictures on the wall, but I couldn’t help but wonder while I waited for my food if I would get an Italian dish or a Big Montana. Ultimately what you have with Angelica’s is good food and good prices with excellent customer service. Angelica’s has only been open about six months so I hope that once the place is more established, the Arby’sorange will be out the door. Ω

Beatriz Pico and her father, Julio Canjura, are the owners of Angelica's Italian and Mexican Restaurant.

Angelica’s Italian and Mexican Restaurant is open Sunday through Thursday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., and Friday and Saturday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.

PHOTO/AMY BECK