Cast of Hands on a Hardbody appear with Nissan pickup truck that’s the focus of the Rohnert Park show. Photo by Jeff Thomas.
By WOODY WEINGARTEN
Hands on a Hardbody, which plays in Rohnert Park through March 1, virtually demands that audience members root for their favorite character.
The country-rock musical pits each of 10 needy Texans against the other nine in a cruel endurance contest that screws with participants bodies and minds. The stated goal: To be the last man/woman standing in a competition to determine who can keep one hand on a hardbody pickup truck longer than the rest.
The storyline, by Doug Wright, is based on the real-life saga of a Longview auto dealer’s annual promotion in excessive summer heat from 1992 to 2005. The competition — which actually ended because of a contestant’s suicide — shallow dives into the inner life of those snagged on the underbelly of society, part of the working class that’s often crushed by big corporations and incompetent, uncaring politicians.
Serena Elize Flores, playing Norma, is the show-stopper. Looking on as she sings is Malik Charles D. Wade I (Ronald). Photo by Lauren Heney.
Theatergoers get a batch of characters to root for. They can sympathize, for instance, with Norma, a fervent Christian who apparently has multiple church congregations praying for her to win. She’s portrayed by Serena Elize Flores, who stops the show with a booming gospel tune, “Joy of the Lord,” showing off what’s easily the best voice on stage. The cast — 16 actors of different shapes, sizes, ethnicities, and vocal abilities —makes the number even better by rhythmically pounding on the truck with white cotton gloves they’re ordered to wear.
But maybe a viewer can better relate to Chris (played by Jake Druzgala), an ex-Marine with survivor guilt who poignantly sings “Stronger,” a melody about needing to be macho while in the service but being vulnerable afterwards. He’s clearly now in a war with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).
Or perhaps sensitive observers might feel sorry for one half of a couple, J.D. Drew (Larry Williams), who’s the oldest participant, a dude forced to retire without a pension by an injury he got falling off an oil rig, or his wife, Virginia (Julianne Bretan), who J.D.’s taken for granted despite her taking care of him. They add another emotional moment in “Alone with Me.”
Mark Bradbury (Mike) puts the moves on Katie Kelley (Heather). Photo by Jeff Thomas.
Compassion might also be given Ronald (Malik Charles D. Wade I), a big, black guy who thinks devouring candy bars will somehow be a winning strategy; Jesus (Maick Poroj), a veterinary student who quietly rails against prejudice and wants to sell the truck so he can pay his tuition; or Heather (Katie Kelly), who gulps down speed pills given her by the somewhat lecherous dealership manager to ensure a fixed victory.
Direction by Sheri Lee Miller makes sure the 2½-hour run-time moves swiftly, and that person after person’s self-explorations are tight and the whole enchilada isn’t choppy. She also underscores the humor that’s sprinkled throughout, keeping the show from descending into sentimental tragedy.
A shiny cherry red Nissan truck on a center-stage turntable might itself by the way be considered a character. It swirls and moves forward and backward and symbolizes a chance for the winner to make a 180-degree life change from down-on-your-luck to light-at-the-end-of-the-tunnel.
The playwright, 63-year-old Doug Wright, may well believe his tale is more relevant today than when it arrived on Broadway in 2013 since he has contended that “our economic tumult has brought age-old fissures of race, class, and income inequality to the fore.”
Hands on a Hardbody certainly offers plenty to chew on. It covers, if superficially, the major disappearance of the American dream, the destruction of the U.S. healthcare system, and the hardship of the blue-collar class in general.
But every now and then, the text spits out a distracting behind-the-times reference. Such as when it refers to Desert Storm in current terms, or it lists the then-spanking new truck at only $22,000.
The basically plotless show — reminiscent of A Chorus Line or Sondheim — features southern rock, gospel, country, and Delta blues. It is, according to music director Lucas Sherman, who’s onstage at Spreckels on keyboards, backed by a violinist, guitarist, bass-player and drummer — “gritty at times and beautiful the rest of the time.” Gritty, of course, wins more often.
Trey Anastasio, lead guitarist of the rock band Phish, co-wrote the music with Amanda Green, who also did the lyrics.
Everyone involved worked on making sure that Hands on a Hardbody, in effect stuck in place by the musical’s arc, doesn’t remain static. They break the story’s theme by having contestants leave the truck to move upstage and sing (without being thrown out of the contest). Characters constantly and gracefully slip ‘n’ slide in front of and behind each other while still touching the hardbody. And Karen Miles’ choreography is wonderfully silly in spite of having most of her dance creations needing to be limited — one-handed.
It’s a show that sounds vastly heavier in a review than it is. It’s extremely likable. And the more a theatergoer thinks about it after leaving, the more that person’s apt to like it even more.
Hands on a Hardbody will play in the Nellie W. Codding Theater of the Spreckels Arts Center, 5409 Snyder Lane, Rohnert Park, through March 1. Tickets: $16 to $44. Info: www.spreckelsonline.com or 707-588-3400.
Sherwood “Woody” Weingarten, a longtime voting member of the San Francisco Bay Area Theater Critics Circle, can be contacted by email at voodee@sbcglobal.net or on his websites, https://woodyweingarten.comand https://vitalitypress.com. His books include Rollercoaster: How a man can survive his partner’s breast cancer, aimed at male caregivers; MysteryDates — How to keep the sizzle in your relationship; The Roving I, a compilation of 70 of his newspaper columns; and Grampy and His Fairyzona Playmates, a whimsical fantasy intended for 6- to 10-year-olds that he co-authored with his then 8-year-old granddaughter.
