Copyright © 2009 by Michael A. Burstein
Written by Rick Park and John Kuntz.
Directed by Greg Maraio.
Starring Maureen Adduci, Elizabeth Brunette, Melissa Baroni, Terrence Haddad, Jordan Harrison, Art Hennessey, Amanda Good Hennessey, Jacqueline McCoy, Shawna O’Brien, Christine Power, and Cheryl D. Singleton.
Presented by Phoenix Theatre Artists and Company One at the Boston Playwrights’ Theatre, 949 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston, Massachusetts.
10-26 April 2009 (Last performances Wednesday-Saturday at 8PM and Saturday-Sunday at 4PM).
For tickets call 866-811-4111 or visit www.superheroinemonologues.com.
105 minutes
At first thought, a parody of The Vagina Monologues starring superheroines might strike anyone as a little bizarre. (Okay, maybe a lot bizarre.) But Park and Kuntz make their parody work by delving below the surface and asking what issues a superheroine would face in the real world. Comic book fans might feel like they’ve fallen into a place like Astro City, as writer Kurt Busiek has explored some of this material himself in his own deconstruction of the superhero. But Park and Kuntz make the material their own, as they allow the superheroines we’ve come to know and love speak for themselves.
The first question they had to answer was which superheroines to include. Comic book readers know that time is fluid in superhero comics; the characters of today might be new versions of the characters of past decades, or they might be the same character drawn in a straight line from the creation. Park and Kuntz have wisely chosen to parody specific versions of well-known characters, picking archetypes that are ingrained in our culture or easily presented to an audience that might not be as familiar with the characters. So, for example, while their Wonder Woman is the one who fought in World War II in the 1940s, their Batgirl and Supergirl are the more recognizable heroines of television and movies. Theatergoers who are completely unfamiliar with the characters can read the background explanations conveniently posted in the theatre lobby.
The monologues are presented as a social commentary on the status of women throughout the decades, starting with Wonder Woman in the 1940s, and continuing through to the 1950s (Lois Lane), the 1960s (Catwoman), the 1970s (Batgirl), the 1980s (Supergirl), the 1990s (Storm), and the 2000s (Phoenix). The stories they tell are rooted in the context of their times, allowing a modern audience to nod wisely at how far we’ve come. For example, Wonder Woman (Shawna O’Brien) and Lois Lane (Amanda Good Hennessey) are both willing to cast themselves into traditional female roles without any sense of irony in order to seduce their respective men. The idea of a powerful woman deliberately making herself appear weak to appeal to a man should bring discomfort to a modern audience, but we are allowed to laugh because we know how far we’ve come since then.
And yet, the play asks, how far have we really come? After a brief flirtation with the liberated 1960s woman as presented by Catwoman (played to purr-fection by Elizabeth Brunette; sorry), the play moves to Batgirl (Melissa Baroni) and Supergirl (Jacqueline McCoy) as two teenage girls who just want to fit in. Batgirl has a mild obsession with being perfect, and Supergirl is a valley girl who can defeat the strongest male supervillains but still gropes for her own identity. The final character, Phoenix (Christine Power), is familiar to comic book fans as a hero who became a villain and almost destroyed the universe. Here she is redefined as a woman who turned evil because of her issues with a controlling mother. (A broader parody would have gone with a far cheaper setup, and it was good to see the writers refrain.)
Although the material is serious, it is through the lens of humor that the concepts are developed. This parody is filled with laughter, and the audience cannot fail to have a good time. In some places, the play goes for the easy joke; contemporary references to Sarah Palin and the current economic turmoil tend to fall flat. But most of the time, the jokes are as deep as the issues they poke fun at.
The love that the cast and crew have for the source material is evident throughout. The set appears painstakingly constructed to hit all the correct notes. The acting and direction by Greg Maraio is on par with much of the excellent local Boston theatre.
Although all the performances are excellent, the most poignant performance is given by Cheryl D. Singleton as Storm. In her monologue, set in 1995, Singleton quietly explains to the audience the alienation that Storm feels not just as a woman, but also specifically as a black woman living in the United States. No matter her incredible powers and authority, Storm is marginalized until she returns to Africa, where she is respected. Even a cheap Halle Berry/Catwoman joke doesn’t detract from Singelton’s powerful dissection of Storm’s character, which alone is worth the price of admission.
Fans of comic books will get a lot out of the references in this parody, but even people unfamiliar with the characters will pick up enough to appreciate the show. Although the play’s limited Boston engagement is coming to an end, one hopes the play will be revived again in another city, and soon. It’s the most refreshing and humorous take on superwomen’s issues that has ever been done on stage.