Rex Smith brings Broadway talents to Barn Theatre's 'Hands on a Hardbody' - MLive.com
KALAMAZOO, MI — Rex Smith is grateful that he's more than a pretty face — the shirtless image of a teen idol that pops up when you Google his name. He's also that anonymous guy at Home Depot looking at paint chips, the almost 60-year-old guy trying to find his six-pack, and a multitalented performer who says he never lived to perform — but performed to live. "I'm grateful for outliving the fame," Smith said. Now, Smith is starring in the Barn Theatre's regional premiere of the musical "Hands on Hardbody. " The title sounds a little titillating, Smith said but the "hardbody" is a Nissan truck and the show is about chasing the American dream. The show follows a group of 10 Texans as they vie to keep their hands on a Nissan "hardbody'" pick-up the longest in hopes of winning the truck. Based on a documentary film of the same name, the show features a score filled with country, blues, Latin and gospel sounds that won it several Tony and Drama Desk nominations when it played on Broadway in 2013. . "It's a real slice of Americana. It's a real human story," Smith said. The heart of the play is the struggle of middle class America, and the characters reveal themselves as they struggle to keep their hands on the truck in the Texas heat. Smith plays J. D. Drew, an out-work 60-year-old who sees the truck as his chance as a new start. Source: www.mlive.com
