Playwright: Kristoffer Diaz. At: Red Theater Chicago at Strawdog, 1802 W. Berenice Ave. Tickets: 773-733-0540; RedTheater.org; $0-$40. Runs through: Sept. 16
My favorite wrestlers are long-ago champs Sweet Daddy Siki and Haystacks Calhoun. Time Past they may be, yet their wrestling personae, their role stereotypes, would be readily familiar today. You'll find similar characters in this athletic yet thoughtful play, which had its world premiere at Chicago's Victory Gardens Theater in 2010.
Author Kristoffer Diaz makes professional wrestling his metaphor for America, readily admitting that even lowest-common-denominator fans know it's scripted and phony. However, just as with some other types of entertainment and even politics, the phoniness is what enables wrestling to exploit racial, ethnic, religious, social and class stereotypes in creating the good and bad guys upon which wrestling thrives. Reflective of contemporary America, the title character, Chad Deity, is an African-American good guy while his opponents often are other shades of brown viewed as America's enemies, among them supposed Mexican and Islamic baddies.
The narrator and hero is Macedonio Guerra ( lithely muscular Alejandro Tey ), a Nuyorican appearing as Mace for THE Wrestling ( a corporate name ). Mace is a jobber, a skilled grappler paid to lose to stars such as Deity ( Semaj Miller ) and make the stars look better than they are in the process. Mace is perfectly happy to "do the heavy lifting," declaring "I am one of THE wrestlers, and I love who I am." He views his rise in pro wrestling as fulfillment of the American Dream. But even Mace's tolerance of the manipulation of bigotry reaches the breaking point in his confrontations with Deity and THE Wrestling executive EKO ( Mickey O'Sullivan ).
The catalyst for Mace's change is Vigneshwar Paduar or VP ( Priyank Thakkar ), a charismatic Indian-American whom Mace pitches to EKO as a great potential wrestling partner. VP is a natural in ways which are increasingly provocative, especially when EKO casts him as a Middle Eastern villain.
Michael Lewis' setting is a small but real wrestling ring, with noisily-sprung floor and pliant ropes. The extensive wrestling action is real, although the intimate theater allows one to observe how moves are done and punches pulled. Kudos to director Jeremy Aluma, fight director Kyle Encinas and fight captain Will Snyder for the vibrant and exciting physical action.
Despite its physicality, Diaz doesn't play his characters stupid for a second and neither does the agile, ebullient, believable cast, with Tey especially thoughtful .