Self-made junk czar Harry Brock (Jaimie Schwartz) is “the monarch of all he surveys,” in the words of his bought-and-sold, self-loathing lawyer, a fallen attorney general named Ed (Christopher Hoffmann). The uneducated narcissist of an entrepreneur is in D.C. to buy a Senator (Jeff Campbell) and an Amendment. But appearances are important in D.C., and Harry’s consort and unwitting co-schemer Billie (Rebecca Brinegar) is a cheeky, unrefined chorus girl. So, corrupt Harry decides to have Billie educated by tweedy idealist Paul Verral, a writer for, of all journals, the New Republic. What could possibly go wrong for Harry’s crooked, sado-capitalist, quasi-fascist modus operandi? Billie’s awakening is the story of Garson Kanin’s 1946 comedy Born Yesterday, in an excellent community theater production by the Portland Players, under the direction of Michael Rafkin.
The place Harry’s renting is one pricey spread of a suite, strongly conjured in Mark Finley’s luxurious set, with its wine-and-ivory paneling, pale blue upholstered furniture, tall staircase, and wide windows overlooking a gleaming Capitol. Here, a gaggle of people on Harry’s payroll scuttle and pander: hotel staff consisting of a nervous cousin with a box of booze (Daniel Bullard), and Hoffmann’s excellent lawyer Ed, who resigns himself to eye-rolling, staying out of Harry’s way, and anesthetizing himself with whiskey. And there’s Billie: brazen, unabashedly sexual, keenly aware of exactly what she is worth to Harry and why.
