The setting is the law office of two successful defense attorneys, one black and one white, and the case is a difficult one— a wealthy white man accused of raping a poor black woman. Now playing at the Kirk Douglas Theatre, David Mamet’s "Race" attempts to discuss the difficult issues surrounding race in Mamet’s quintessential, unapologetic style. With a title like "Race," it is no surprise that Mamet’s play explores issues of the shame, guilt, and discomfort that come about when discussing this topic.

Jack Lawson (Chris Bauer) and his black partner Henry Brown (Dominic Hoffman) open by discussing the details of the case with the accused, Charles Strickland (Jonno Roberts), in an attempt to decide whether or not they want to serve as Strickland’s defense team. Both Lawson and Brown explain to Strickland that his case has become a media sensation because of the race of the victim and the fact that he is a rich white man. They believe that a jury will have to find him guilty due to larger cultural pressures and the fear of being labeled racist if they were to acquit. After sending Strickland out of the room, Brown and Lawson include Susan (DeWanda Wise) in their conversation as the weigh whether or not they believe Strickland is in fact guilty.

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All four actors are undeniably good at what they do. Chris Bauer plays a fearless and candid Lawson who isn’t afraid to talk about race and the realities of what it means to be black or white. Bauer walks the fine line between arrogant white privilege and remorseful white guilt as he explains the reasons for his own prejudices and admits that “there is nothing a white man can say about race that isn’t either offensive or incorrect.” Dominic Hoffman plays an equally powerful Brown, a black attorney who isn’t afraid to say what everyone else is thinking, no matter how inappropriate or downright insulting it may be. While he is on stage less so than the other actors, Jonno Roberts plays Strickland with the most depth, leaving the audience to question whether or not Strickland is in fact an innocent man. Lastly there is DeWanda Wise who plays the young, new addition to the firm, Susan. While Wise’s performance at first seems very contrived and unrealistic (some of the mistakes she makes with the case are those no Ivy-league law graduate would ever make) it becomes apparent later why she may have been so nervous and clumsy.

Despite the fact that this play is indeed well-acted, and the stakes are very high, it rarely reaches moments of real dramatic tension, in part because it feels that Mamet is using his characters merely as vessels to divulge a social commentary on the bigger picture of race. And while the social commentary is certainly an interesting one, "Race" is just too transparent in its intentions, leaving the audience feeling very detached from the characters on stage. For a Mamet play, "Race" is extremely tame in its use of vulgarity and language, a relief to anyone who is turned off by Mamet’s constant quest to instill shock in his audiences, but what ‘Race’ doesn’t have is moments of relief from the conversations of race. The show is basically a 90-minute, uninterrupted conversation about the big picture, but it fails to bring this big issue back to the characters specifically. It seems Mamet simply had something to say about race, and chose his setting and characters arbitrarily, the same conversations could have been had by two garbagemen instead of two attorneys, and the outcome would have likely been the same.

In terms of design, the visual elements of the show are about as stagnant as the play itself. The set (designed by Jeffery P. Eisenmann) is a cozy law office, simple and non-memorable, but it does serve its purpose. The lighting (designed by Josh Epstein) does not, and should not change, as it would be odd if the law office suddenly transformed into some dim and dramatic soap opera set. The design is simple and not distracting, as it should be, because this is a play about content over everything else— including character development, unfortunately.

Talking about race is always hard, but it is something that always needs to be done. While one can appreciate Mamet’s attempt to approach this topic in a somewhat non-traditional way, the transparency of his intention is simply too much to get past. The greatest plays always follow the “show don’t tell” rule, but unfortunately, Mamet’s "Race" is a painful 90-minutes of tell. Perhaps if Mamet would have dove deeper into the specific struggles— not just those invoking race— of each individual character, the play would have been more engaging. There is no doubt in my mind that the actors would have been able to rise to the challenge.

Reach Theater Editor Savannah L. Barker here.

"Race" in playing at the Kirk Douglas Theatre (9820 Washington Blvd., Culver City) through Sept. 28. Tickets are $25-$55. For more information visit CenterTheatreGroup.org.

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