by Larry Richman
September 26, 2008 5:50 PM

Three of America's most talented young indie film actors, Michael Welch (Twilight), Aaron Himelstein (Fast Food Nation), and Mae Whitman (Hope Floats), are appearing onstage in Stephen Karam's controversial play Speech & Debate. Under the direction of Daniel Henning, the actors perform Thursdays through Sundays at The Blank Theatre in West Hollywood. I was present at Opening Night, Thursday, September 18, and returned the following evening for an encore.

Besides being a hilarious and exciting night of theater, this is an exceptional opportunity to see these budding movie stars together in a live setting. The three grew up as friends. Welch and Himelstein have worked many times before, including the CBS-TV hit Joan of Arcadia and the recent All the Boys Love Mandy Lane and Remember the Daze. Welch first worked with Whitman at the age of 11 as a Buddhist monk on CBS' Chicago Hope.

The play has been very well-received. "The performances are uniformly strong (all three actors have extensive television and film resumes), but the standout is Michael Welch as Howie (an openly gay student). His expressions and tone are pitch perfect and underplayed. As a result, his character comes off as genuine and engaging rather than stereotypical," said Ariana Mufson on CurtainUp.com. "Mae Whitman is a powerful presence as Diwata, especially when she blogs online through her video cam with musical musings...Aaron Himelstein rounds out the cast as Solomon, and some of the best scenes are between him and Welch, with overlapping dialogue and an easy rapport that makes them fun to watch."

I highly recommend taking advantage of this rare opportunity while you can. Fortunately, for those unable to make the trip (or for those who have and enjoyed it as much as I did), all of America will have the chance to see this play soon, albeit in a slightly different form. I was told after the Opening Night show that Overture Films has picked up the rights to turn Speech & Debate into a movie. Here are some pictures I shot at the Opening Night afterparty.


Click thumbnails to enlarge






Michael Welch and friend Ryanne



Aaron Himelstein & Mae Whitman