Ass at PTC

Last night I went to see the world premiere, delayed twice by Covid, of Ass at Pioneer Theatre and, while I found it to be incredibly thought-provoking, I did not particularly enjoy it.  Jule Waterman (T. Ryder Smith) is a world-renowned artist known for his larger than life sculptures of specific body parts that are so captivating they suggest the whole person.  He is a genius but he is narcissistic and difficult.  He is also suffering from kidney disease which necessitates daily dialysis treatments while he waits for a transplant.  He is married to Tory (Laura J. Hall), a significantly younger woman who is the latest in a long string of wives and girlfriends.  Because she is insecure about her importance in his life, she is desperate to be immortalized in one of Jule's sculptures.  His son Will (Ben Cherry) has been immortalized in sculpture but he still feels unimportant to his father.  His wife Ana (Elizabeth Ramos) is anxious to have a child but she can't conceive and needs expensive IVF treatments.  She pressures Will to return to his childhood home to ask his father for a loan and Tory pressures Jule to ask Will for a kidney so he can continue working on a sculpture of her.  It takes a dialysis nurse named Ray (Vince McGill) to get Jule and Will to express their feelings to each other.  The title of the play comes from the imposing sculpture in progress that completely dominates Jule's living space (I liked the set which is an eclectic New York loft complete with an elevator) and from the fact that every character (with the possible exception of Ray) behaves like one.  Even though the subject of familial relationships is universal I couldn't really relate to any of the characters because they are so unlikable and the unnatural dialogue, which sometimes seems really bombastic, keeps them at such a distance.  Most of the humor falls flat (I only laughed once and I can't even remember what prompted it) and there are surprisingly few emotionally satisfying moments.  I did find some of the themes to be compelling, such as the degree to which someone should be indulged simply because they are a genius and how the children of famous people suffer by comparison yet often ride the coattails of their parents to unearned fame.  This show is interesting but I didn't love it as much as other productions at PTC.  It runs through Nov. 6 (go here for information and tickets).