American Players Theatre: ‘ART’
La Shawn Banks, Triney Sandoval, and Marcus Truschinski
American Players Theatre Presents ‘ART’ Review - It’s A Piece of White Sh*t!
TLDR: Three friends with a 20+ year friendship come face to face with how they’ve changed over the years stemming from an argument over a painting. The three actors show vulnerability and play with emotional levels and space to bring depth to each of their characters.
Triney Sandoval and Marcus Truschinski
Men Can’t (Or Won’t?) Express Their Feelings
Serge grins excitedly, holding back pure delight. He clasps his hands and says, “Do you want to see it?” He walks into the other room and we wait anxiously for him to come back. He returns holding the canvas, the front turned in towards himself so we can’t see it just yet. He presents it with a flourish for the grand reveal and it’s….white. All white. With some horizontal and diagonal white lines running across it. This. This is the painting that causes a rift for three friends and we see if their friendship can survive it in ‘ART’.
When Serge (Marcus Truschinski) spends a pretty penny on this piece of modern artwork, his two friends pass their own judgements. Marc (Triney Sandoval) expresses his disbelief loudly. When it doesn’t seem like Serge is amused by his judgements, he goes to Yvan (La Shawn Banks). When Yvan doesn’t believe Marc, he goes to see Serge. They all talk about each other to each other without ever addressing the person they’re talking about. A dialogue driven show, ‘ART’ is all about how they’ve all changed as people and so their arguments aren’t really about the painting. The only problem? No one wants to actually talk about it.
In the heat of the moment, there’s a pause. A spotlight hits one of them, the others freeze, and they turn to us. Here in these asides, we see completely different sides of them than what they’re showing their friends. We get their inner thoughts and self-reflections. But then the lights come back up and we’re dropped back into real life where they refuse to be vulnerable. They can’t seem to stop themselves from arguing or dancing around the issue instead of just airing it all out.
Playing With Levels and Breaks
Even though the majority of the show is in these heated arguments, under the direction of Jackson Gay, our actors play with heightened emotions, pause when needed to let the room breathe, and find moments of levity.
As Yvan, Banks plays the middleman between Marc and Serge, anxiously wringing his hands when the room is tense. He crawls around on the floor looking for his pen cap. His maroon suit fits loosely as he lost weight from the stress of his wedding. He overreacts to having a knock upside his head and almost places the bag of frozen peas on the wrong side. But we see him come into his own, finally letting his opinion be known without trying to please anyone.
Truschinski as Serge is so in love with his painting. He’s dressed in well-pressed jeans and a scholarly tweed jacket, so it seems like he’s an intellectual man with taste. He’s hurt when both his friends look at the painting and seem to dislike it but is too proud to show it. He picks up the painting, turns his back to his friends, sniffs with his nose in the air, and returns the painting to the other room like a kid taking his ball away when his friends aren’t following his rules.
And Sandoval plays Marc as the blunt, mouth-moves-faster-than his thoughts friend of the group. An engineer, he’s very methodical and practical, dressing with a subdued, classy style but wears a crystal necklace to show he can let loose every once in a while. When he realizes how he and Serge have changed, symbolized by their vastly different opinions, he calls into question the very foundation of their friendship.
These three play with the highs and lows of the dialogue delving into their feelings, but know when to take a pause and let their actions speak for themselves.
The After Party Thoughts
Funnily enough, I just saw this play last month here in Chicago (you can read the review here if you’re interested) and though of course it’s the same play, the two productions strike different chords. Our actors here in American Players’ production are older which builds years into their friendship. We get the sense that this underlying tension and everything that’s been unsaid has been festering for a long time.
Though ‘ART’ is a show with deeper, philosophical questions of how do friendships and people change, what do we hold on to and what do we let go of, this production finds the balance of digging deeper into those questions, but doesn’t linger in the heavy emotions for too long. They recognize the absurdity of their arguments when they need to and pull us back up to a lighter mood.
For those that like relationship and dialogue focused comedies that dive into philosophical questions but don’t take themselves too seriously, ‘ART’ would be a good fit for you!
RECOMMENDED
Marcus Truschinski, La Shawn Banks, and Triney Sandoval
When
Now through September 28, 2025
Where
American Players Theatre
Touchstone Theatre
5950 Golf Course Road
Spring Green, WI 53588
Runtime: 1hr 30min, no intermission
Tickets
$66+
Tickets can be purchased through the American Players Theatre website
Photos
Michael Brosilow
Find Allie and The After Party featured on Theatre in Chicago
CAST
Triney Sandoval (Marc)
Marcus Truschinski (Serge)
La Shawn Banks (Yvan)
CREATIVE
Jackson Gay (Director)
Fabian Fidel Aguilar (Costume Design)
Kate Noll (Scenic Design)
Keith Parham (Lighting Design)
Joanna Lynne Staub (Music Composition & Sound Design)
Tiffany E. Adams (Assistant Costume Design)
Kendra Luedke (Stage Management Assistant)
Kenji Shoemaker (Stage Manager)