The vibrant wit of British playwright Joe Orton comes to town this month in a production of “Loot” by the Dallas Theater Center at the Kalita Humphreys Theater. The savage satire sends up all those familiar institutions of society — law, order, religion, family and marriage.
“What it possesses is both a sharp-edged satirical bent along with a gleefully comic spirit, which makes it a perfect end to our season,” says director Jonathan Moscone. “He has a keen wit and wonderful sense of language married with this visceral urge to break out of the conventional life of England. ‘Loot’ has a sense of youth, rebellion and anarchy.”
Orton grew up in a poor district of London and wrote seven plays before he was battered to death in 1967. “Loot,” his last effort, won three British best-play kudos, including the prestigious Lawrence Olivier award. Its farcical plot revolves around a murder, a stash of stolen money and some unscrupulous characters.
Previews are scheduled for May 29 and 30, and the comedy opens on May 31 and runs through June 19. Tickets range from $9 to $36.