![]() ![]() It’s that delusion that triggers a violent and tragic explosion by the end of the play. ![]() It’s played out via the play’s thematic motif of the three-card monte scam that Booth is desperate to learn. On the otherhand, Booth channels his hurt into delusion. Linc tries to sweep feelings under the rug and move on with his life. While they each share the same abandonment issues, they each deal with them in different ways. Linc is still haunted by his divorce from his first wife, Cookie, while Booth is holding onto hope that his ex-lover, Grace, wants him back. Their parents walked out on them as teenagers, a fact that reveals itself in more detail in the second act. What Hawkins and Abdul-Mateen II do best is manifest the long-term effects of abandonment. Scenes like Linc scaring Booth after coming home in white face as Abe Lincoln and Booth removing his coat to unload two full suits he boosted are displayed so realistically that you laugh because you can relate. The play’s funny moments work so well because they aren’t played off as heavy-handed gags. Corey Hawkins and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II fully immerse themselves in their characters in “Topdog/Underdog.” (Photo by Marc J. ![]()
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