So let\u2019s delve further into this Pulitzer Prize-winning play, which is an interesting combination of very funny, very sadly serious, and a bit too slow at times. Go figure.<\/p>\n
![\"(L-R)](\"https:\/\/itsnotaboutme.tv\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/09.-PRIMARY-TRUST.-Photo-by-Knud-Adams-e1780342623468.jpg\")
<\/a>(L-R) James Urbaniak , Petey McGee, and Ugo Chukwu. Photo by Knud Adams.<\/p><\/div>\n
Actually, I really wasn\u2019t sure what it\u2019s about until almost the end. So I just went with the entertaining journey. It\u2019s basically the story of how one man copes with the pain of loss and loneliness. Despite the inherent sadness along the way, (to me<\/em>, anyway, because I always want people to have friends,) Primary<\/em> Trust<\/em> is filled with laughs. And excellent performances from all four of the actors.<\/p>\n Petey McGee does the heavy lifting admirably as Kenneth, who I believe is never off the stage, except to change an item of wardrobe! (The character often does not complete a thought, \u00e0 la Charles Barkley discussing basketball, so I\u2019m used to it. But I\u2019ve never seen it in a play<\/em> before!) Ugo Chukwu is his bestie, Bert, who any of us would be lucky to have, with his humor and charm, and most importantly, care of Kenneth. James Urbaniak plays a trio of comic roles, and is very funny in all of them. And the only female, Rebecca S\u2019Manga Frank, basically steals the show, playing all the waiters and waitresses at a bar, which is Kenneth\u2019s \u201cfavorite place on earth,\u201d and<\/em> all the customers at the bank that Kenneth eventually works at!<\/p>\n And let\u2019s not forget Luke Wygodny, the lone musician who unobtrusively provides all the low-key background music, (which he composed!) He plays keyboard, cello, and guitar, and keeps ringing a possibly important bell throughout, although I still can\u2019t find anybody who really<\/em> understands its purpose. (I\u2019m surmising that it either stands for passage of time, or that Kenneth needs to stop talking about something. Or that the production just wants to annoy us.)<\/p>\n Petey McGee and Rebecca S\u2019Manga Frank. Photo by Jeff Lorch, as is the one at the top of this review.<\/p><\/div>\n I love a play that gets right to it! Primary Trust<\/em> begins with the brilliant line, \u201cThis is what happened,\u201d and just goes from there. (I\u2019m actually a bit jealous about that smart start\u2014I wish I<\/em> had thought of that when I was doing my TV show, instead of the insipid sing-song, \u201cHi, welcome to my show.\u201d I may have to do a new<\/em> television endeavor now just to There are so many aspects one could discuss about this deep-yet-charming play: psychological effects of childhood trauma, what friends are and mean, what that bell signifies, the multiple meanings of the title, what small-town life was like before cell phones, and my fave\u2014how important kindness is. But I\u2019m leaving it up to each individual theatergoer to figure it all out for themselves.<\/p>\n Petey McGee as Kenneth and Ugo Chukwu as the best imaginary friend ever! Photo by Jeff Lorch.<\/p><\/div>\n I\u2019m actually, and not jokingly, more interested in this<\/em> aspect: You know I hate telling you anything about the action of a show, especially when part of it is a fun surprise. But this<\/em> revelation happens pretty soon after the start, and it\u2019s important to the story, (and to mine, as well,), so here it is: Kenneth\u2019s bestie, Bert, is\u2026imaginary! I love it. That\u2019s the best<\/em> kind of friend! Even though Kenneth is thirty-eight in this tale, he and my four-year-old self have that in common. But I had two<\/em> of them\u2014brother and sister duo Peter and Diane Kosher. Well, I actually had four<\/em>\u2014Big Peter and Diane and Little Peter and Diane. The \u201clittles\u201d and I had deep conversations on my red toy phone every night before I went to sleep. And the \u201cbigs\u201d and I had financial meetings in the bathroom, with my father\u2019s checkbook! (Boy, those were the days.) So I totally understand this character, and I thank playwright Eboni Booth for those great memories. (Yet they\u2019re not distant<\/em> ones\u2014somehow, the Koshers come up in convos with Mr. X every few months!)<\/p>\n Adoring miniatures and dollhouses, I loved Marsha Ginsberg\u2019s set of smaller-than-in-real-life buildings. There was the Primary Trust Bank, of course, the bar Wally\u2019s, a church, and the one I loved the most, (but didn\u2019t understand the location of,) an ice cream shop on top of another building, (which I deduced because of the soft serve cone at the top.) I could live in that fictional town! And a big shout-out to the person responsible, (perhaps lighting designer Masha Tsimring,) for the snow effect near the end\u2014it took my breath away. (Actually, don\u2019t avert your eyes for even one second during the entire presentation or you\u2019ll miss something.)<\/p>\n The set before the show begins. Notice the placement of the instruments in the bottom front. Photo by Karen Salkin.<\/p><\/div>\n I rarely write about, or even think about, the direction of a show, but during this one, I made a note that it\u2019s \u201cwell-staged\u201d by director Knud Adams. Even the placement of the musician\u2014on stage, right in front of the first row of the audience, so that we can all still see<\/em> him a bit, but not really notice<\/em> him much\u2014is spot-on.<\/p>\n But at an hour and forty-five minutes with no intermission, Primary Trust<\/em> feels just a tad too long. Perhaps the ending monologue, though incredibly powerful, should be a bit quicker; such long pauses between sentences aren\u2019t necessary. There are two other super-slow bits, but they are comedic<\/em> ones, and the long time to get them done is what makes them hilarious\u2014an old lady counting out one penny at a time to the bank teller, and a waiter bringing full drinks to the table without spilling them. Those both drew the biggest laughs of the night when I saw the show.<\/p>\n The beginning of the “snow scene.” Rebecca S\u2019Manga Frank and Petey McGee. Photo by Knud Adams.<\/p><\/div>\n Outside of the length, there are only two minuscule auxiliary bits about Primary Trust<\/em> that bothered me a smidge. At one point, Kenneth says, \u201cMe and my friend\u2026\u201c That is soooo wrong, and it\u2019s like nails on a chalkboard for me to hear it. I\u2019m sure it was a choice for the character, but I\u2019m always happy to take the opportunity to share a little grammar lesson. The correct thing is to put yourself second<\/em>, so the proper sentence structure is, \u201cMy friend and I\u2026\u201d did whatever. Or it happened to \u201cmy friend and me.\u201d It used to be only really uneducated people who said it wrong, but, very sadly, nowadays<\/em> that egregious error seems to be constantly made by somewhat intelligent people, too. How is that happening?!<\/p>\n The other slightly bothersome moment for me was that although I was seated way up at the top, (which is a wonderful sightline at the Taper, by the way,) I could smell and feel the smoke from the one on-stage cigarette! (It didn\u2019t smell like an herbal one to me.) And the odor was so strong that at first I thought that someone in the row behind us had lit up! (However, one of them recorded<\/em> the whole show! Shame on them.) But the smoke smell dissipated quickly enough to not cause an asthma attack, so I just got over it. I\u2019m mentioning it simply because it was a curious situation for a theatre these days.<\/p>\n And now, here\u2019s the best news of all. If you\u2019re an Empath, as I<\/em> am, you\u2019ll be glad to know that Primary Trust<\/em> has a happy ending, even though at times along the way it may not look like that will be the case. So you can just relax and enjoy it all. But bring a tissue. Or two.<\/p>\n Primary Trust<\/em> running through June 28, 2026<\/strong> PRIMARY TRUST On the way to Opening Night of Primary Trust at the Mark Taper Forum, my friend asked me what genre of show this would be. I never check-out the promos before I see something, so I had no idea. But I replied hopefully that I believed it was a comedy, even though I<\/p>\n<\/a>steal<\/del>\u00a0use\u00a0that opening line!)<\/p>\n<\/a><\/a><\/a>
\n Mark Taper Forum 135 N. Grand Ave.<\/strong>
\n 213-972-4400 www.centertheatregroup.org<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"