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In this one-woman play, a selection in the New Works Series, the playwright/performer explores the contradictions and intersections of feminism and traditional marriage values through the eyes of a straight woman struggling with the planning of her "non-traditional commitment ceremony."
The narrative unfolds in short vignettes, as Corinne, a radical feminist, finds herself in a committed relationship, and begins to contemplate marriage. She wonders if she is betraying all of her feminist ideals, and whether she should participate in an institution she had always considered patriarchal oppression. She wonders if it is fair to marry her partner when her gay and lesbian friends do not have the same right. In fact, some of her feminist friends cannot accept her decision to marry, and choose not to attend her commitment ceremony.
Using flashbacks, letters, monologues, and some witty scenes involving multiple characterizations, the character and audience progress from fantasizing about a fairy tale wedding (complete with Cinderella-type ball gown, cake, and invitations) to a discussion of some of the darker sides of marriage: financial and emotional dependence, our consumer culture's takeover of the sacred ritual of a wedding, the politicization of marriage as a legal state. A scene where Marlene portrays four older women playing cards was particularly well drawn: funny, but also poignant. These women, by discussing their own marriages, comment on the changing role of women in society and in relationships over the past fifty years. Marlene handles these emotionally charged issued with a deft hand, allowing us to laugh at ourselves in the guise of her somewhat archetypal characterizations.
The documentary-style video clips played during the transitions between these vignettes were especially powerful. The audience knows immediately that these women are real, sharing their wedding experiences, their expectations and perceptions of marriage. The playwright chose to interview a wide variety of women, young and old, gay and straight, and their sincerity and emotional authenticity layered a depth of emotional quality and dimension that benefited the play.
The play ends with Corinne's address of a poetry magazine, The Literary Labia, which she helped found while in college. The group is considering becoming exclusively lesbian, and Corinne somewhat didactically exhorts the group to acknowledge and embrace each others' differences because, like poetry, the combination of contradictory elements can create a greater whole. Whether or not you can cast off your cynicism and earnestly hope for a better world through togetherness and understanding, as the character in the play seems to be able to do with little difficulty, the play is thoughtful, honest, and funny as a whole.
The discussion period after the play allowed the audience to respond to the work; some did so in terms of content, while others commented on the structure and presentation of the play. We learned that while the piece currently is being workshopped at the Hambridge Center for the Arts in Rabun Gap, Georgia, it will be presented again sometime in the upcoming year, presumably by the Green Mountain Guild. I look forward to watching the development of this witty and insightful work.
Thinly Veiled
Green Mountain Guild
written and performed by Gail Marlene
directed by Chris Tebbetts
St. Michael's Playhouse
July 1999
