Dyke Cunt Fem Theater

You vaginas talk amongst yourselves; retch has something to say to everyone

Comments (0) By Mia Leonin Thursday, Jun 27 2002

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What's so funny about the postfeminist world? Quite a lot, actually

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Through July 6. Evening performances Thursday, Friday, and Saturday at 8:00; 786-201-0615.

The Light Box, 3000 Biscayne Blvd

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The final part of the play, "Family," is the most puzzling of the evening because it is a very different kind of theater from the previous two acts. It is drama, whereas the other pieces are clearly comedy. It would be interesting to develop "Family" into its own piece, but as it stands it's hard to make the shift from raucous humor to heavy-duty emotion. The premise of the first two acts is so clear, it risks turning retch into a hodgepodge of monologues, which it is not. Also the monologues within this last section are not very cohesive -- two explore the dangerous emotional terrain of family tragedy and the other two deal with more trivial family issues, creating an odd contrast.

Azurdia rejects the idea that retch is a feminist play -- and perhaps rightfully so -- although she does admit the play is a reaction on some level to feminist thought: "All of us are torn between the views; we don't understand the hard-core, militant feminists, but we also get frustrated when we get put down for trying to succeed." In the end retch is not a play of ideas, not an intellectual play. But it is a reminder of how important it is for theater, especially comedy, to be an experience and not a thesis. In not trying to address one particular group or idea, Azurdia ends up reflecting on many, just by looking at the world around her and finding the humor in it. Thankfully all of these miniplots aren't resolved. This kind of in-your-face performance shouldn't be -- there's too much to keep laughing, and crying, about.