and at least one man's savage enjoyment. i admit having a perverse sense of humor. true, i try to be a moralist and once in awhile i succeed. other times, despite a strong resistance, i surrender to black comedy, and go home chuckling through the dark streets, as i did last evening after the secretaries at the blue room theatre. this morning i feel a bit of remorse, of course. and then i start laughing all over again.
during the first act, always a setup, i kept making excuses for not getting involved. the story not convincing, the scene changes too long, why would anybody want to do this show, and so on. bringing out the bloody chainsaw just before the intermission made me stay. (no spoilers here, look at the poster). and the second act paid off in spades, exactly as it must do to make for a satisfying play. underneath, my terrible animal lust for blood and sex fulfilled. if i make any apologies, it's for not knowing myself better.
yes, none of us likes a goody-two-shoes, whatever that expression means. all the research into sexual websites prove men like strong women. if they didn't, the margaret thatcher of the iron lady would not have held the post of british prime minister for so long. nor would meryl streep have received an academy award for playing the role. what i don't like -and perhaps most men - is whining and complaining about being oppressed. i hate those traits in any form. the violence in the real world of the black panthers didn't receive any sympathy from me. barack and micheal obama, on the other hand, have my admiration, despite any perceived and real flaws. nobody likes a cry-baby.
so what about the show? the actresses delightful, obviously having a great time. oddly, i quickly got over "this is acting", which after fifty years dabbling in the profession, i often do not. instead, they caught the tone and rode it. secondly, the scene changes should have thrown me out of the world of it, and didn't. perhaps, since these were working women, moving furniture just seemed part of their job. and the renovation of the new girl in town exactly what i wished, perversely developing in a way i could believe, that the real difficulty of directing and acting this piece.
as for men's worst fears and their ultimate delight in them, look at the covers of many manly magazines from the fifties and sixties. secretly, as long as they too can make a pay-check, men relieved at the rise of women and the lessened pressure. at least, i am. and i say this at some personal cost.
http://blueroomtheatre.com/. highly recommended for mature audiences.
