Review by Joe Siegel

The darkly funny “Talk Radio,” which opened on May 8 at Barker Playhouse, does everything right. Provocative, sometimes disturbing, and exceptionally well-acted, it’s also one of the year’s best shows.

Justin Pimentel plays Cleveland-based radio host Barry Champlain, who learns his show, Night Talk, is about to be broadcast from coast to coast.

Barry has an acerbic personality and has no reservations about shutting down obnoxious callers, of which he has plenty. Some are harmless but very odd.

A male caller boasts about eating dinner with his cat. One female caller worries about the extinction of panda bears.

Barry has a tense exchange with a caller who taunts him about being Jewish. When a package arrives at the studio, Barry doesn’t hesitate to open it, even though a bomb may be inside.

Eric Bogosian wrote “Talk Radio” in 1987, the height of the Reagan era. The play was later adapted for the screen by director Oliver Stone (“Platoon”). The inspiration for the show was the real-life assassination of Denver DJ Alan Berg.

On a purely technical level, the work exhibited by the production crew – particularly the set and sound design – is flawless.

Ian Hudgins, who plays Barry’s screener Stu, recreates the look and feel of a radio studio on Barker Playhouse’s stage. The attention to detail is exquisite, with Barry’s staff visible in the window of the control room. The callers can be seen behind a tinted window.

Under Terry Shea’s direction, the show is sharply paced and features one of the most interesting characterizations in any show this year.

As Barry, Pimentel displays a hard-edged charisma which subtly masks a contemptuous attitude toward his callers. Barry is rude, often witty, and always brutally honest in his comments. It’s an amazing performance and Pimentel soars with a powerful closing monologue which sums up the entire show. Barry needs his callers as much as they need him. They are his life support system.

Ron Martin (“Harold and Maude”) plays the station manager and has a beautifully acted scene where he ruminates on Barry’s career path.

Lauren Kieler is wonderful as Barry’s long-suffering producer Linda, who reveals an affair she once had with Barry. Judging by her words, Barry is not easy to be with.

Mark Roberts gives a solid comic performance as a caller named Kent, a spaced-out teenager who visits Barry in the studio. Not surprisingly, it doesn’t end well.

Part of the fun of the show was trying to guess which actor was voicing a caller. Shea chose a talented batch of performers, including Laura Ash, Jay Burns, Paula Faber, Paul Nolette, Marcia Layden, Rick Pond, Christopher Ricci, Richard Griffin, Lee Rush, and Geoff White to play them.

“Talk Radio” is unlike any theatrical experience I’ve ever had. Instead of watching a play, I felt as if I were in that radio studio with Barry and his staff. Listening to these callers sharing their perspectives was a lot of fun. Maybe that explains the popularity of social media.

We just love to hear other people talk, even when they have nothing to say.

Talk Radio runs through May 17. The Players at Barker Playhouse. 400 Benefit St., Providence, RI. Runtime is 2 hours with intermission. For tickets, call 401-273-0590 or visit playersri.org.

Justin Pimentel in Talk Radio. Photos courtesy of Liz Messier.

Ron Martin, Lauren Kieler, Ian Hudgins