Be prepared to be pretty petty about prettiness, too (or not).

The ArtsWest Playhouse and Gallery’s 2010-2011 season opening production is now here: the Seattle premiere of Neil LaBute’s reasons to be pretty. (Your Hedonista attended as a media invite.) Nominated for the 2009 Tony Award for Best Play of the Year, this performance is emotionally electric (and downright painful for those of you who don’t like conflict, but in a good way, if you catch my meaning).

For Neil LaBute (of partially French Canadian descent and raised in Spokane, Washington) is known as American theatre’s bad boy: he evokes raw, edgy, and viscerally disturbing facets of human relationships. In reasons to be pretty (the third in a trilogy, with The Shape of Things and Fat Pig the earlier plays) he fearlessly turns the mirror into the full, surgically altered, eating-disorder-riddled face of American culture to reveal our ridiculous, mindless, and blind obsession with physical beauty. (Don’t get me started, dear hedonists.) American society’s ever-changing standards of what is in fact “pretty” – which works to the advantage of many industries hell-bent on making us hate ourselves to the point of product consumption (O.K., so I’ve started) – poisons the romantic relationships of two couples who also happen to be both blue collar coworkers as well as friends with one another. The F-bomb gets dropped … a lot, for example. And the themes revolve around physical beauty, sex, lust, and feelings of inadequacy (we’re talking NC-17, here).

In the play's opening, Greg (played by Shawn Law) doesn't see what's coming from Steph (Angela DiMarco), his girlfriend of four years. Photo by Michael Brunk, provided by ArtsWest. Used with permission.

Directed by Katjana Vadeboncoeur along with Assistant Director Emily Harvey, the four-member cast pulls off an intensity that will make your stomach clench, particularly in the opening scene. Shawn Law’s portrayal of Greg makes you first hate, then absolutely love him. West Seattle native Angela DiMarco is a veritable fireball (not to mention cutie-pie) as Steph (who’s anything but insecure at the core). David S. Hogan plays the testosterone-infused piggish Kent with passion. And Allison Standley pulls off a very sweet, demure, and stereotypically pretty Carly who in the end is made of much stronger stuff than originally thought. (What’s more, Angela and David met on the stage and are now married in real life.) Oh, and there’s technically a fourth character – supposedly the prettiest of the women – but she exists in name only (Crystal) … perhaps that’s telling in an of itself (i.e., beauty is truly in the eye of the beholder, so by never revealing her, each of us puts her in our own respective “prettiest” category).

The Seattle premiere of reasons to be pretty runs from September 8 through October 2, 2010; tickets range from $10-32. Before attending, I suggest you do two things: 1) dine local (stay tuned for possibly dine and show promotions) and 2) listen to some spa music while taking some deep, relaxing breaths prior to entering the building.

And remember: although life itself ain’t always pretty, each and everyone of us is pretty (and hedonistic) in our own respective ways – and that’s the antidote to the petty pretty poison highlighted in reasons to be pretty.

I feel pretty, oh so pretty…. (That song will likely be stuck in your head for hours, now….)

Note: In order to comply with FTC Act 16 C.F.R. 255, Heed the Hedonist would like to disclose that it does receive media “comps” and/or media discounts – but not in exchange for favorable coverage, or for withholding unfavorable coverage, of the given venue/meal/performance/product/service.

Fox Matthews (L) plays George - who's sometimes the straight man, and sometimes the comedian, which confuses things. Austin Gregory (R) played Jerry - and apparently joined the cast at the last minute. Photo by Christine Mosere, provided by The Phoenix Theatre. Used with permission.

The plot is a good basis for humor; however, bringing a 1920s-1930s play into the present is no easy task; an uncensored and prohibition-free version, filled with straight men and straight women – “straight man” used in the comedic sense, here, a role often laced with deadpan humor – who fade in and out of fulfilling their expected comedic roles hindered the punchy delivery and timing of more than one line and made it feel more like an improv evening than a rehearsed play.

That said, Director Christine Mosere – who was terrific as Claire in Fuddy Meers – put together this show on a shoestring budget (hint, hint – support your local theater, dear hedonists) complete with the challenges faced by such restrictions. In addition, three of this fourteen-member cast are also from Fuddy Meers: Steve Heiret (who played Claire’s husband Richard and the Ernest/Porter/Bishop last night); Rick Wright (formerly Limping Man turned Mr. Glogauer); and Melanie Calderwood (formerly Claire’s mother Gertie, now Mrs. Walker/the eccentric and absent-minded Miss Leighton). The rest of the cast is as follows: Kayti Barnett (Phyllis); Colleen Carey (Struggling Actor – Cocktail Waitress/Cleaner/Page); Susan Connors (Miss Kamerling/Miss Sullivan); Alysha Curry (the dim-witted Susan Walker); Diane Fadden (Struggling Actor – Hotel Worker/Cleaner/Page); Laura Hanson (one of the foremost characters, May); Eric Helland (Lawrence/Clive/Vail/Leading Man); Alyssa Kay (Florabel, and real-life sweetheart of Fox Matthews);  Fox Matthews (the other main character, George, and real-life sweetheart of Alyssa Kay); Maureen Slabaugh (who played Helen Hobart, a veritable force to be reckoned with/Spike); and Austin Gregory (Jerry).

Still, the show wasn’t as polished – or as funny – as it should have been (and nowhere close to Fuddy Meers).

(BTW – In 1932, ironically – or perhaps idyllically – the play was sold to Hollywood.)

Note: In order to comply with FTC Act 16 C.F.R. 255, Heed the Hedonist would like to disclose that it does receive media “comps” and/or media discounts – but not in exchange for favorable coverage, or for withholding unfavorable coverage, of the given venue/meal/performance/product/service.

Directed by Kate Witt in her directorial debut, this love-filled, quirky comedy features Cindy Bradder (Molly), Nick DeSantis (Harry/Waiter), Heather Hawkins (Joan), Christopher Zinovitch (Beane). The love in this film is based both on romantic love as well as familial love between brother and sister (now, now … no incest here).

Joan is a very career-oriented gal who’s a wife to the laid-back, tell-it-like-it-is Harry and devoted sister to her hermit brother Beane – a slightly slow and very withdrawn introvert who, although functional, is likely struggling with some sort of mental illness. Without giving too much away, Molly is a thief who becomes Beane’s love interest – and sends shock waves throughout the entire cast as a result.

The gist of this play – brilliantly performed by this quartet cast – is that love conquers all. The lines are  well-timed in their delivery (not to mention often hilarious). The only critique would be that the wrap-up of the play seems hurried and a tad discombobulated, as if there was a time constraint that we just couldn’t exceed and, as a result, we simply “skipped to the ending.”

Regardless, go see it – the bonds of love between these characters are so strong, they’ll definitely put you in the mood for love – be it romantic or familial (or both) … all month long.

Note: In order to comply with FTC Act 16 C.F.R. 255, Heed the Hedonist would like to disclose that it does receive media “comps” and/or media discounts – but not in exchange for favorable coverage, or for withholding unfavorable coverage, of the given venue/meal/performance/product/service.

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