Missing the days of gun-slinging outlaws, country music, beautiful southern belles adventure? Look no further, Round Rock, nominated for Best World Premiere at last year’s Hollywood Fringe Festival, is a 2013 original play which captures all the elements of the classic western.
The play has been on tour in Los Angeles since March 21st and ends its run on April 27th at the studio/stage theater in Los Angeles.
The play, written by playwright Aaron Kozak, revolves around the adventures of Sam Bass and his gang, a group of Texas outlaws on the run from the sheriff and his law enforcement. The gang has committed an expansive train robbery which put them under the sheriff’s radar.
Throughout their journey, the gang goes through a series of challenges that either threatens or strengthens their friendship and loyalty. Some members are swayed by promises of reward money, others by beautiful women, and others by fear of death.
Ultimately, when each member of the gang gets placed under a monetary bounty, their alliance undergoes the ultimate test. They realize under pressure who can be relied on to protect the gang and its members until they make it back safely to Round Rock.
Besides the believable performances and the realistic special effects; what I liked most about the play was the country music which played between each scene.
The play was broken up into several scenes, each connected with a different snippet of a classic country music song. Though I would not call myself a fan of western movies or music, I found that Round Rock was truly, “a traditional western—drama unlike any other.”
It could make even a romantic comedy fan like myself, tap my foot to the country music and become attached to the lives of the protagonists. Though he was an outlaw, the audience and I rooted in support of Sam Bass.
His passion for life and love was contagious, and he inspired many characters to live as he did. We felt his struggle and his pain as an outlaw; though we booed against the corrupt sheriff and his police force, we cheered at Bass’ success in outsmarting their efforts.
According to Theatre Unleashed, the promotional company behind “Round Rock” vows to, “push its artistic boundaries, striving to reach that emotional resonance with our audience that only live theatre can create.”
With Round Rock, Theatre Unleashed did just that, its modern version of a classic genre was directed in such a format that it could be relatable to a diverse audience, which included myself.
