We were two or three scenes into David Mamet's two-hander A Life in the Theatre, the debut production from Tacoma's Working Class Theatre NW, when my wife leaned over and whispered, "People do not talk like this." I knew what she meant. Actors and critics often claim Mamet's truncated sentences and indirect ramblings mirror everyday speech patterns, but that's ridiculous. His dialogue is almost as stylized as Kushner's or Shakespeare's. Like both, it demands a particular skill from its actors: the ability to memorize, perform, and slightly overlap dialogue that packs a wallop without seeming to go anywhere in particular. The truth is it's a lot more fun to watch a Mamet play than read or perform one. I know.

Read Christin Carvajal's full review of A Life in the Theatre in the Music and Culture section.

A LIFE IN THE THEATRE, 8 p.m. Friday through Saturday, through May 31, Working Class Theatre NW, 1102 A St., Tacoma, free, workingclasstheaternw.blogspot.com