If you travel down Broadway Avenue in Nashville any night of the week, you will find multiple dusky voiced troubadours performing in vintage honky-tonks like Ernest Tubb’s Record Shop. While these old school baritones perform various tracks from the Willie Nelson songbook, other establishments on that strip, like Lainey Wilson’s colorful Bell Bottoms Up, pulsate with a pink neon energy that borders upon the fabulous. That latter vibe is what attracts Conor, a gay teenager in the Croyden section of South London, to the country music scene in the charming My Life as a Cowboy, currently running at Open Space Arts in Chicago’s historic Uptown.
Determined to escape his dreary suburban life, Conor dreams of becoming a back-up dancer for Shania Twain or one of her rootsy, diva-like contemporaries in America. Enlisting his doubtful Muslim friend Zainab and Michael, his moody, straight co-worker, to perform in a local talent contest, Conor is sure that he will win the grand prize, a meeting with a world renowned talent agent. But after Zainab develops choreography for one of Twain’s popular tunes, the easily bored Michael insists that they dance to one of his original songs instead. As Zainab and Michael clash, Conor begins to learn that true growth occasionally means that your initial desires may face heavy alterations on their way to becoming reality.
Nicely, director David Zak works with a light yet firm touch in bringing playwright Hugo Timbrell’s fun vision to life here. He is aided by Devin Meseke’s fantastic set design. Meseke fashions Conor’s room with a perfect understanding of what it means to be an artistic youth while also, simply yet authentically, designating the lifeguard station that Conor and Michael work at. Jade Andrews’ costume design additionally helps create the personality of each character while also establishing some brilliant pop in the show’s final sequence.
Performance-wise, Octavio Montes De Oca brings both sweetness and blind determination to Conor. These qualities make him a relatable force to any audience members remembering the star spangled dreams of their own childhoods. Momina Shahzad, meanwhile, sparkles with an enthusiastic focus, achieving honest chemistry with De Oca. They truly seem like best friends, making their potential fallout all the more heartbreaking.
In perhaps the show’s toughest assignment, Ben Chalex brings an edgy likeability to Michael. Despite the character’s often selfish behavior, he allows vulnerability and compassion to shine through in just the right measure. He and the others also champion the humor inherent in Timbrell’s script. All give just the right amount of punch to the many comical situations that the characters find themselves in.
This sense of joy ultimately makes this show almost seem like a vital experience. As we enter the Midwest’s uncertain winter months, exacerbated by governmental violence and despair, the feel good properties here are sure to nourish anyone choosing to spend 70 or so minutes with these exceedingly likable folks.
My Life as a Cowboy runs through February 8th at Open Space Arts, 1411 W. Wilson. Further information is available at www.openspacearts.org.