By Lawrence Wise 
                       Fire and brimstone comes right out of the heart of Texas and
                       into the Hippodrome State Theatre in "God's Man in Texas." 

                       The intelligent, thought-provoking and funny play may make
                       some audience members feel they somehow got lost and
                       ended up at a revival. But never fear - the religious emotion
                       here is merely the strong acting abilities of cast members
                       Mark Kincaid, Scott Kealey and Warren Hammack. 

                       The play opens with characters Jerry, played by Kincaid,
                       and Hugo, played by Scott Kealey, discussing politics and
                       preaching at the Rock, the largest Protestant church in
                       Houston. Jerry is a visiting preacher and Hugo works
                       behind-the-scenes for The Rock's T.V. show. 

                       The three-person cast, which also includes Gottschall,
                       played by Hammack, weave together a tale of modern
                       religion, with all its epitomes and pitfalls. 

                       Jerry fights for a position as pastor of the Rock. To do so, he
                       must convince the politically motivated church officials. This
                       includes longtime pastor Gottschall, who is reluctant to step
                       down from his position. He also competes against his
                       college rival, who is mentioned but is not a character in the
                       play. 

                       Eventually Jerry gets the position of co-pastor, but that only
                       begins his problems. He soon learns being the pastor at the
                       Rock is much more than just preaching the Word of God. 

                       The play has many funny anecdotes, and the first act - even
                       at its most serious - has moments that make you smile. For
                       example, when Jerry is preaching during one of the pulpit
                       scenes, he tells a story about his mother. 

                       He asked her what she thought God's voice would sound
                       like. Her response: "Walter Cronkite." 

                       Little jokes, like that one, are told throughout the
                       performance, keeping a light-hearted nature to a profound
                       play. The analogies are less than subtle. The playwright,
                       David Rambo, uses his play to remark on the similarities of
                       modern preachers and salesmen. 

                       Jerry's father was a salesman who preached in his spare
                       time. Jerry said his father always used the "pitch," the
                       crucial words that sold the product. Even when the product
                       he was selling was God. 

                       Gottschall brings that point home with a quote early in the
                       play. 

                       "I like preaching that starts off with a bang," Gottschall said.
                       "Something that grabs them and holds them." 

                       Each actor performed well, and, with such a small cast, the
                       production depended strongly on each actor's ability. An
                       emotional scene in the second act, in which Jerry and Hugo
                       fight, ends in a teary-eyed moment. The diversity of each
                       actor is evident, as they convey the emotional turmoil their
                       characters experience. 

                       I would certainly recommend seeing "God's Man in Texas."
                       Not only is it a profound look at modern religion, it's a search
                       for our place in the greater scheme of things. And that is
                       something most people understand. 
 
 

Gainesville Sun  Friday, January 14, 2000 

The phenomenon of the  mega-church has become a part of contemporary American religious life. The mega-church houses everything - giant chapels, TV  studios, bowling alleys, swimming pools, restaurants, movie theaters, schools and colleges, ballparks, orchestras and, in David Rambo's dynamic drama, "God's Man inTexas," parking lots for 10,000 cars. In Rambo's   play, those who walk the aisle of The Rock, his Texas church, want for nothing in the way of material goodies. Do they lack for  spiritual intimacy, a personal connection to God?

Jerry Mears (Mark Kincaid) is God's man at the Hippodrome KIM BAULDREE/The Gainesville Sun

                    The question is only one posed in Rambo's long
                   but deeply engrossing play, at the Hippodrome
                   State Theatre. On the surface, "God's Man"
                   appears to be about the schism between the
                   powermongers of the church and those who
                   seek a simple route to God's message. It has
                   just three characters, Dr. Phillip Gottschall, the
                   81-year old church pastor; Jerry Mears, the
                   aspiring pastor who looks to succeed
                   Gottschall, and Hugo, the church's sound
                   technician, a reformed alcoholic. The greed,
                   jealousy and paranoia that accompany
                   powerseekers surge to the play's forefront. 

                   And while this struggle takes place in a
                   mega-church it's easy to imagine is in other
                   areas of life: business, academia, family. 

                   "God's Man in Texas" is filled with humor, but
                   it's not meant to be a rolling-in-the aisles
                   comedy. All the same, this Hippodrome
                   production plays like a Moe-Larry-Curly laugh
                   riot, particularly in the first act. The underlying
                   threat to the sanctity of man's relationship to
                   God should be felt throughout the play, but it
                   only hits with a solid whack in the play's second
                   act. The strong thread that should run through
                   the play lies loose until that final jerk. 

                   Considering his advanced age, Gottschall should
                   be seeking a successor, but he only gives lip
                   service to making that decision. Jerry, the young
                   pastor, an honest man with good intentions, is
                   seduced by the material attractions of the
                   mega-church. Still, it's hard to believe he doesn't
                   see through Gottschall from the beginning. It
                   takes Hugo, the "Mary Magdalene" of the play,
                   to bring Jerry back to his fundamental belief in a
                   God who whispers, a God who can be heard
                   outside the Las Vegas-like setting of the
                   mega-church. 

                   The performances by all three actors amount to
                   a tour de force. Warren Hammack as Gottschall
                   gives an uncannily accurate portrayal of the
                   pastor drunk with his own power. It's an
                   understated performance, simultaneously
                   humorous and alarming. An eerie resemblance
                   between Hammack's Gottschall and Ross Perot
                   hits hard. 

                   Mark Kincaid's Jerry is totally sincere, a bit
                   taken with himself, blinded and ultimately
                   indignant in his voyage to redemption. Where
                   Hammack is understated, Kincaid is
                   flamboyant. 

                   Scott Kealey as Hugo is truly the comic relief of
                   the play. His performance is ingenuous,
                   appealing and without artifice. 

                   "God's Man in Texas," directed by Mary
                   Hausch, runs a good three hours*. Repetitious
                   passages in the play's first act could do with
                   pruning. But Rambo's words are seductive and,
                   like the preacher calling the flock to walk the
                   aisle in his mega-church, they make for
                   mesmerizing theater.