Felipe Luz’s semi-autobiographical solo play White Men are Trash and I’m a Raccoon has the advantage of Luz’s larger than life personality and willingness to be self-deprecating that makes most of the play an entertaining watch. But the play suffers from the same woe is me approach that makes plagues most solo plays and ultimately makes them a difficult view.

This show would be a much better 40–45-minute stand-up act than a 70-minute play where the last 15 minutes are devoted to Luz’s strained relationship with his father who abandoned the family when Luz was 2. Luz does not benefit from the internal resolution that Tom Nemec brought to A Cat in a Box or the acting brilliance that Ari’el Srachel brings to OTHER. But describing his overwhelming kinkiness, promiscuity, and at least pretend search for lasting love as well as the pettiness and need for vengeance on those who he perceives to have slighted him is entertaining to watch as eyes tend to be drawn to a self-inflicted train wreck even if it elicits neither sympathy or empathy.

David H. Parker doesn’t seem to have brought much to the play as director since Luz spends most of the play addressing the audience from the center of the stage, but, in this case, that may be too harsh a judgment since it can be imagined that Luz is very hard to direct.

The audience at The Tank, at least the night I was there, gave a spontaneous, rather than perfunctory, standing ovation which indicates that Luz probably, if he matures his skills, has the potential to become a talented actor to go with his larger-than-life personality.