Rock, Lobsters and Bad Love

In 1971 Sam Shepard abandoned his wife and child to canoodle with Patti Smith. Their relationship was doomed from the start, birthed of a betrayal and fueled by more passion than realism. Before Shepard and Smith parted, they wrote a play that incorporated elements of their own relationship, their ideas on what a stagnant America needed most, rock & roll, paranoia and poetry. Cowboy Mouth is about Cavale, a wild woman who may or may not be holding Slim hostage. Cavale works hard to convince Slim he could become the rock & roll Jesus if he just believed. Slim talks about French poets, and the ruination that Cavale has brought to his life. And then there's the dead crow, and the Lobster Man who brings the star-crossed lovers food. Mad Art presents Cowboy Mouth at 8 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday (July 15 through 18) at Mad Art Gallery (2727 South 12th Street; 314-771-8230 or www.madart.com). Performances by Jimmy Griffin and Jesus Was A Sullivan Band follow the show Wednesday through Saturday, and Irene Jones performs prior to the show on Friday and Saturday. Tickets are $7 Wednesday and Thursday and $10 Friday and Saturday.
July 15-18, 2009