Greedy, dishonest and so today

NEW YORK — The extremity of our greed-fueled economic crisis may have pessimists wondering whether American values have reached an all-time low. Two David Mamet plays from decades past currently being revived on Broadway suggest not. Our old conniving friends from "American Buffalo" and "Speed-the-Plow" do more than entertain us with their patented verbal jazz -- they reassure us that we were just as crooked a generation ago.

Cold comfort, I know. But "Speed-the-Plow," the far more throbbingly alive of the two productions, left me feeling as though I had just received the theatrical equivalent of a plasma infusion. Thrillingly acted by the unbeatable trio of Jeremy Piven, Raul Esparza and Elisabeth Moss, this taut tale of Hollywood power-mongering and manipulation could just as well be set in our era were it not for the fashion choices of these would-be movie moguls, which continually remind us that the play takes place in the garishly grasping 1980s.

New York is in a downcast mood now that the tab from the financial industry's orgy threatens to bankrupt the rest of us.

But the electricity generated at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre by the bold attack of Neil Pepe's staging could jolt theatergoers out of their slump. This relatively minor Mamet work from 1988 -- famous for having lured Madonna's star-power to Broadway -- turns out to be one of the fall season's major bright spots.

Charlie Fox (Esparza, in a performance that should by rights earn him that long-delayed Tony Award) brings a potential blockbuster deal to Bobby Gould (Piven, cutting a figure every bit as sharp as Ari Gold, the super-agent he killingly plays on HBO's "Entourage").

Bobby has just been promoted to head of production, with the power to greenlight a film that comes in under $10 million. Charlie's hoped-for "buddy picture," sure to clobber at the box office, would cost considerably more than that, which means that Bobby will have to get the approval of his boss before Charlie and he can break into the big leagues.

Enter Karen (a note-perfect Moss), the temporary secretary with a casual sexiness and a sly idealistic streak who becomes the subject of a bet between Charlie and Bobby about whether Bobby can bed her by day's end. To win (all any top Tinseltown exec cares about), Bobby invites Karen to his home to deliver a report on some arty apocalyptic book that no one in his position would ever dream of turning into a film. Yet with a glass of wine and a seductive glare, Karen proves unexpectedly persuasive -- to the outrage of an increasingly violent Charlie, who finds out the next morning that his project has been bumped for a ridiculous "courtesy read."