In the newest entry, “Race” suggests people color the facts through the lens of bias, bias of any kind related to gender, ethnicity, class—you name it.

Here, a privileged white man is accused of rape and seeks assistance from a mixed-race, high-powered law firm.

With the entire action taking place within the plush walls of the law firm, Mamet outlines the questionable circumstances in a rat-a-tat, matter-of-fact staccato vocal clip. To a degree, James Spader references the character he played so successfully on TV in “Boston Legal.” As much at home on the stage as on TV, he’s at liberty to exercise an incisive wit and intellectual gamesmanship.

A chamber play, Spader is supported by David Alan Grier, Richard Thomas and Kerry Washington.

Spader and his fellow cast members trade sentences with the cool of poker card dealers. As claims and evidence mount, things heat up, but the tension never snaps. “Race” consistently runs just below the boiling the point. Questions about race and gender, truth and lies, cynicism and optimism, justice and the law slam into each other.

As director, David Mamet approached his material with a clean, conservative hand and that does not interfere with the language’s architecture.
C. Ipiotis