The new comic thriller “Small Engine Repair” isn’t subtle, but it more than makes up for it by being tawdry, nasty and fun. It’s proud pulp fiction, something we don’t get enough of at the theater.
Playwright John Pollono pulls double duty as Frank, the owner of the title’s shop. The entire action takes place in that grungy little garage, where you can get your weedwacker or snowblower fixed — we’re in Manchester, NH, where such things come in handy.
For seemingly no good reason, Frank has invited over his childhood buddies Packie (James Ransone) and Swaino (James Badge Dale). The guys haven’t been hanging around much in a while, so Frank made up hazy pretenses. He told the high-strung Packie a story involving cancer, and lured ladies’ man Swaino with the promise of strippers.
None of those things materializes, but beer and whiskey do, so Packie and Swaino stick around.
We’re then treated to intense bro chatter spiced with nonstop swearing as the trio catch up. Frank is still dedicated to his 17-year-old daughter, despite hating her mother. Swaino — inching toward 40, like the other two — dates and dumps women in their early 20s. “We kinda lost touch after I stopped calling her,” he says of one.
As for Packie, the human version of a small, yapping mutt, he’s unemployed and living in his grandmother’s basement. Still, he flatters himself a social-media expert, and got Frank to set up a Foursquare spot in the garage.
Director Jo Bonney keeps the scenes moving, but after about 45 minutes of that nonsense, you’re still looking for a point.
Right on cue, Frank announces that he’s expecting a house call from Chad, a rich, drug-dealing college boy.
Chad is played with smarmy arrogance by Keegan Allen, best known as heartthrob Toby on TV’s “Pretty Little Liars.” But the fans who flock to the Lucille Lortel Theatre may want to cover their eyes and ears — if they can even get in, since the profane, violent “Small Engine Repair” is considered inappropriate for theatergoers under age 17.
That’s because Pollono switches to a higher gear in the final stretch, and all hell breaks loose. The conclusion is too good to spoil, so let’s just say it involves a visual that will remain branded on your eyeballs for a while.
The show does feel like a long, wordy wind-up for the sake of one brief punch — but at least it’s an outrageous knockout.