By Michael Buzzelli
Kenneth (Monteze Freeland) invites us into his neighborhood, a small town outside of Rochester, New York, where we learn the patterns of his lonely life in Eboni Booth’s “Primary Trust.”
Kenneth lives a small life in his small town. He works at a bookstore and drinks Mai Tai’s every night with his best friend, Bert (Malic Maat), in a Tiki bar called Wally’s.
Side note: There’s a secret that Kenneth and Bert share, but it takes us far into Spoiler Territory that might make you yell out, “Holy Manoj Nelliyattu Shyamalan!”
Sam (Sam Turich) tells Kenneth that he is closing the bookstore, where Kenneth worked for twenty years. Suddenly, Kenneth is on a hunt for a new job. At the bar, Kenneth meets a server, Corrina (Bria Walker-Rhoze), who tells him the bank is hiring.
Soon, Kenneth interviews with Clay (Sam Turich again) and lands a job as a teller at Primary Trust.
P.S. Bria Walker-Rhoze shows up as ALL of the bank’s customers, men and women, young and old.
The actors (all local favorites) excel in their roles.
Freeland has always been one of Pittsburgh’s best Top Tier Talents (he is a writer, director, actor, educator, and more), but he is at his best here, bringing us into Kenneth’s world with a deliberate grace and ease. He immerses himself in the role.
Walker-Rhoze is tasked with creating multiple roles in “Primary Trust,” and she shines in each. Her Corrina has the most down-to-earth realness of the roles, but some of the other characters are laugh-out-loud funny. It’s easy to love Corrina, and even easier to laugh at the rest.
Turich plays three distinct roles as well. He’s Clay, Sam, and a fussy French bartender in a snooty high-end restaurant, Le Pousselet (which may or may not translate into the French word for “baby carriage”). Turich’s Clay is a boisterous manager reliving his high school halcyon days. The character of Sam (the fictional one) has a gruff exterior but is full of heart. His bartender is hilarious.
Maat is charming as Bert, but to speak more of him would reveal the tragic twist. His Bert is both the devil and the angel on Kenneth’s shoulders.
In the small-town setting, I was hoping Kenneth would run into the OG Bert (sorry, that’s a little spoilery).
Antonio Troy Ferron’s set design is impressive. Building facades hang in darkness, giving the town a bleak, nearly monochromatic look until we enter the Primary Trust bank setting, where everything is bright and green.
Kudos to production stage manager Pamela Brusoski and stage crew for tracking the props, shrimp cocktail, endless Mai Tais, hats, sunglasses, etc.
Director Kyle Haden draws nuanced performances from the actors, even when the characters are at their biggest. His vision of “Primary Trust” is flawless.
Booth’s “Primary Trust” is a deep meditation on loneliness, the power of friendships, and the beauty of being seen.
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“Primary Trust” runs from March 25 to April 12 at the O’Reilly Theater, 621 Penn Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15222. For more information, click here.
