NEW YORK – Whatever you do, don't read this review.
We're kidding, of course. Even still, we'd like to help preserve some of the squirmy sensations of "Bug," a jaw-dropping, skin-crawling thrill ride that's best enjoyed going in completely blind. (So if you're spoiler-averse in the slightest, don't say we didn't warn you.)
Masterfully constructed and told with pitch-black humor by actor and playwright Tracy Letts ("August: Osage County"), this incendiary thriller explores the paranoid underbelly of conspiracy theorists – a topic that's only become more queasily relevant in our current right-wing nightmare.
"Bug" premiered in London 30 years ago and was even adapted intoa 2006 film starring Michael Shannon and Ashley Judd. But the play has somehow never swarmed Broadway until David Cromer's nervy new production, which opened Jan. 8 at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre.
The formidableCarrie Coonreturns to Broadway for the first time since 2012 when she made her potent Main Stem debut in "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" alongside Letts, her now-husband. HBO's reigning queen – fervently beloved for "The White Lotus," "The Gilded Age" and "The Leftovers" – delivers yet another chameleonic turn as Agnes, a terminally lonely waitress puttering around her dingy Oklahoma motel room, where she numbs herself with drugs and booze.
Although she receives some visitors – her lesbian biker pal, R.C. (Jennifer Engstrom), and abusive ex-husband, Jerry (Steve Key) – Agnes mostly lives out her days in a grief-stricken haze until she meets Peter (Namir Smallwood), a Gulf War veteran who may or may not be on the lam. The social pariahs soon fall into bed together, and gradually, Peter lures her into his delusional web of government intrigue and "Big Brother" surveillance.
To say much more would spoil the fun, although with extensive nudity and gushes of blood, it's probably wise to leave the kids at home.
For better or worse, the play is split into two acts – presumably so scenic designer Takeshi Kata can flood the stage with tin-foil-hat doodads and whatnots during intermission. As a result, some momentum is lost: The languid Act 1 is primarily table-setting, as Agnes lounges and lights up with Peter in their claustrophobic abode. But that low hum of dread ruptures into heart-pounding horror in the breakneck Act 2, as the couple mutilates their bodies trying to rid themselves of parasitic pests.
Of the supporting cast, which also includes Randall Arney, Engstrom shines brightest as the fiercely protective R.C., who gradually comes to realize that her friend's self-destructive tendencies have warped into something far more alarming. And while Smallwood lacks the bug-eyed intensity that makes Shannon's work so eminently creepy, his soft exterior and roguish looks make you understand how Agnes could be swept up by Peter's crackpot logic.
It goes without saying that "Bug" belongs to Coon, whose transfixing tour de force is reason enough to snap up a ticket immediately. The three-time Emmy nominee is every bit as ferocious and fragile as you'd imagine, with a devastating final monologue that makes you feel enormous empathy for the unsound Agnes, who desperately grasps for answers in her false new reality.
While lesser actors might veer into overwrought hysterics, Coon – with her piercing gaze and tousled mess of hair – creates a character that is fully lived-in and believable. Like the very best art, or a pesky insect, it's the kind of performance that burrows deep into your soul.
"Bug" is now playing through Feb. 8 at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre (261 W. 47thStreet).
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:'White Lotus' star Carrie Coon is electrifying in 'Bug' – Review