See “For Pete’s Sake” for Pete’s sake!

A few nights ago my friend and I ventured down to check out an Off-Off Broadway show. What the heck are those you might ask? Well they are like Broadway shows except they are hella cheaper and a lot more intimate.  So we went to go see “For Pete’s Sake” which is about, stars, and is written by Joe Capozzi who comes to terms with the abuse he felt at the hands of Father Pete. In the play the audience views the inner turmoil of Joe as he confronts the “good” voice played by David G. Beck, who tries to help sooth Joe, and the “bad” voice played by Alfredo Diaz, who is very dominating and encourages Joe to drink and understand what had happened to him. Jorge Humberto Hoyos, who will forever be associated with this creepy character, plays Father Pete who takes a liking to Joe, and eventually his nephews, and encourages Joe to watch pornography and talk about his sex life. “For Pete’s Sake” also stars Tom Pilutik who plays multiple character’s from Joe’s father to his brother, and does it quite well, and Bilgin Turker who also plays many different characters ranging from Joe’s mother to his ex-wife, very Oedipal if you ask me. This 6 person crew did an amazing job showing the struggles that Joe went through and the awful moments he experienced with Father Pete. Now enough about the show, onto the review!

I thought Joe did an amazing job and many of you might wonder why. I mean he was playing himself, right? But it was more than that, he showed his struggle and inner turmoil so well. It was so intimate and at times too intimate for me, but I still enjoyed it and I thought the lines were clean and well delivered. When he said things like, “I don’t know” you didn’t feel like they were fillers, rather he still to this day didn’t understand why he acted the way he did.

I also enjoyed the presence of Father Pete who never left the stage but sat in the background the entire time only to rise when he had to interact with Joe or his parents. This was very symbolic because it showed, by literally showing it, that Joe’s abuser was always present within his head.

Alfredo Diaz deserves mentioning in this because he was great. Constantly telling Joe what he was going to do or not do next and it appeared as though he was cause of all the mental anguish Joe was feeling over the event. He just played it so profoundly, telling the other voice to eff off and telling Joe exactly what he was going to do.

This play also appeared to be another way for Joe to come to terms with his abuse, allowing him to actually talk to the abuser and say things he was never able to say. It was extremely powerful and emotional to watch but it was totally worth it.

All in all, this play was excellent and I hope it returns for another round. The ending was superb and tear jerking. I was on the fence about this play because I have a very difficult time when it comes to child abuse but, despite this, I really enjoyed this play. I suggest that if this play is revived, you should see it. You won’t regret it.

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