The 20th anniversary production on Broadway of David Mamet’s famous dissection of Hollywood, Speed-the-Plow, raises a burning question: In publicizing the play, has Mr. Mamet finally gone off his rocker?

His quite recent public conversion from a self-described “brain dead liberal” into some kind of neo-conservative pedagogue isn’t at issue here—except for his espousal of free market self-interest and greed. Profit (at any cost) is the theme of Speed-the-Plow, though the renowned dramatist put it differently in his Sept. 3 New York Times article, “Drama that Brings Home the Bacon,” which rationalized and plugged his play, and left me wondering about his sanity.  read more »

It's the 20th anniversary David Mamet’s Speed-The-Plow and the Belasco Theatre will start the birthday celebrations on Oct. 3. with director Neil Pepe (who recently helmed Ethan Coen’s Almost an Evening) and stars Jeremy Piven as greedy producer Charlie Fox hugging it out with The Homecoming's Raul Esparza as Bobby Gould, according to BroadwayWorld.com.

The play is a scathing portrait of the film industry and the people who are willing to sell their souls for sex, fame and fortune--a timely revival with the Screen Actors Guild and studio negotiations still in the works. Speaking of unfinished business, producers have yet to cast is the role of Karen that Madonna originated on Broadway in the 1988 production.