Our English Cousins: 4 actors in Bouncers to play more than 20 characters

By: By Leigh Somerville McMillan | SPECIAL TO THE JOURNAL
Published: September 05, 2010

Right out of the chute, The Hanesbrands Theatre in the Milton Rhodes Center for the Arts aims to brand itself as a professional performance space. With its first play, Bouncers, it squarely faces that from which most community theaters steer clear: a script that requires actors able to learn foreign accents and audiences able to appreciate British humor.

Bouncers, which will open on Wednesday, is a multi-award-winning dramatic comedy written by the Englishman John Godber. The play, first produced in Edinburgh in 1984 by the Yorkshire Actors Company, is billed as "the spiritual cousin of the hit film, Saturday Night Fever."

Produced at The Hanesbrands Theatre by Mark Woods, of New River Dramatists, it will star Ben Baker, Travis Smith, Lee Spencer and Quentin Talley.

The professional actors portray four dramatically different nightclub bouncers: steady and calm Ralph, frustrated and violent Les, curious Judd, and soulful Lucky Eric. But the actors also play more than 20 other characters -- all without a change in costume. A wide range of talent is required to bring to life an entire cross-section of disco-goers, including giggly girls, falling-down drunks and smooth-talking DJs.

Woods says that despite the foreign setting, the audience will identify with the disco scene in all its layers. "In the '80s, a lot of things came together and a lot of things came apart," Woods said. "There were dreams, tragedies, loss and discovery. It's 90 short minutes, and it's a heck of a ride." Woods warns that the play contains "adult themes and language."

Although the accents are British, two of the actors -- Baker and Smith -- have roots in Winston-Salem.

Smith, who portrays Lucky Eric and five other roles, said that playing a woman is his dream come true. "Sometimes, theater really needs to be fun," he said. "That's why it's called a ‘play.'"

Smith, 36, grew up in Winston-Salem and graduated from Reynolds High School with Baker. They shared starring roles in high-school plays and went on to study acting, Baker at New York University and Smith at UNC School of the Arts.

After graduating in 2000, Smith lived in New York City for a couple of years where he said, "My music took off for me more than my acting." He recorded an album in Harlem and toured Australia for four months. He returned to the states in 2002 and a year later moved to Atlanta, where he works as a professional musician and actor.

Ben Baker was living in Los Angeles when Mark Woods saw him in Bouncers a couple of years ago. At the time, Woods was working with Milton Rhodes as a consultant on the new arts center and recognized that the play would be a perfect fit for the new, black-box theater. When he mentioned that he wanted to bring the show to Winston-Salem, Baker suggested his old friend Smith for one of the roles. They began rehearsals here on Aug. 10.

"Playing with these guys is the most fun," Smith said. "It's pure joy."

Smith said he has enjoyed his homecoming. "This is not the Winston-Salem I grew up with," he said. "I'm so pleased with the growth I see. But even with all the new restaurants and bars, without a place to see live theater, there would be a huge component missing."

Bouncers will be performed at 8 p.m. Wednesday-Saturday, Sept. 14-19, and Sept. 22-25; at 7:30 p.m. next Sunday, and at 2 p.m. Sept. 19 at the Hanesbrands Theatre, 209 N. Spruce St. Tickets are $20 ($10 on Wednesdays) and can be bought online at rhodesartscenter.org or 747-1414.