Warholcapote: A Non-fiction Invention

In 1978, Andy Warhol and Truman Capote set out to write a Broadway play by recording their conversations—it never happened, but Broadway director Roth (The Art of Classic Rock) here uses the recordings to fashion an inventive if uneven stage play that inevitably favors dialogue over plot. There are a number of exciting exchanges: “Friendship is the perfect sort of trust and belief,” Capote says, and “If someone would really take care of Truman, he would be okay,” Warhol muses. Many names are dropped: Liza Minnelli is “wild!”; Tennessee Williams is spotted in a Key West bar; and Jackie Kennedy is “the world’s greatest female impersonator.” Following the play comes some “bonus” transcript material consisting of the artists’ thoughts on writing, sex, speaking engagements (“I do think one should do it once in a while,” Capote says), and New York City (“It changes so quickly. It just changes like that,” according to Warhol). Unfortunately, the back-and-forth often comes across as dry and navel-gazing on the page, lacking the dynamism of a live dialogue. Still, Capote and Warhol fanatics will relish “hearing” directly from the artists in this unique if not wholly successful endeavor. (May)