Cockroach Theatre back on track after hiatus

I'd just about given up on Cockroach Theatre.

The 10-year-old company fathered several seasons of plays that were often among Vegas' best. And their houses, from what I could see, were frequently full. Then they seemed to disappear.

Cockroach occasionally produced a show, or helped out on someone else's, but for years they didn't regularly perform. During their dry spell, someone called me asking how I thought Cockroach could get itself to the "next level." I told the woman, "They could start doing plays."

What happened?

"Life got in the way," managing director Levi Fackrell says. "Marriages, kids, a suicide. We wanted to stop beating our heads to the ground and live like human beings."

The troupe - named after an insect known for its resilience - also wanted to get itself on better financial footing. I was concerned that the audiences they had built up would drift away.

But with a second 2012-13 drama now in progress ("The Mineola Twins"; cockroachttheatre.com) it appears the folks there may have made a wise decision.

"Marketing seems to always be the last item that's addressed," the 23-year Vegas resident points out. "We've got to get out of this mentality that marketing is just posts on Facebook. That's not going to fill up seats."

Fackrell and colleagues spent their time on hiatus fundraising and space-finding. They've raised about $23,000 for their all-volunteer organization, and found an attractive, small, quaint downtown stage in the Art Square.

"This has taught me a lot about putting your vision out there," he says. "I was at a bar (after his bread-and-butter job) and struck up a conversation with a stranger sitting next to me. I told him I was looking for a performance space. Wound up he had one. He's now our landlord."

Fackrell feels downtown is the place to be.

"Downtown is the best thing that ever happened to us. People walk in and say, 'This is just what we've been looking for.' They're excited about our being there, and not shy about spreading the word. They want (challenging) entertainment."

Although Fackrell seems confident "the average person" would enjoy Cockroach's plays, he's aware the company is making little attempt to cater to what some would call "average tastes." The season is rich in dramas and dark comedies - the sort of stuff, regardless of quality, some Vegas playhouses wouldn't touch.

"A lot of people don't go to the theater because they feel they don't have the vocabulary to deal with it. It's not accessible. I'm hoping audiences will come to trust us. I think if we do (well-known plays, such as 'Death of a Salesman') then maybe they'll take a chance on the unknown, the 'progressive' works."

Fackrell said the group is always looking for not only audience members, but behind-the-scenes and administrative people. There's no one person in charge, and Fackrell likes it that way.

"We don't want to burn out," Fackrell said. "We want to be Vegas' regional theater. And that's not going to happen if Cockroach has to close because one person gets tired."

Anthony Del Valle can be reached at
vegastheaterchat@aol.com. You can write him
c/o Las Vegas Review-Journal, P.O. Box 70,
Las Vegas, NV 89125.