The
following review contains adult subject matter. This is not a warning, but rather a seductive
tease. I’m going to talk about
vibrators. While I have never been one
to embrace the harmonic pleasures of such a device … I have been acquainted with people (you know who
you are), who unabashedly relish the joys of achieving resonant frequency with
electronic gadgetry. So before I delve
deeper into the subject I suggest that you just relax. Breathe.
Don’t be so tense. Trust me. The more you let go, the more you will enjoy
yourself.
In the Next Room, or the Vibrator Play, is Sarah Ruhl’s Tony Award nominated play about the
innovation of the electric vibrator. It is set in the 1880’s, when human toil was
meeting head on with high voltage electricity that powered an industrial revolution. An exciting time when Thomas Edison began to
introduce the light bulb into every home, dogs and elephants were being
electrocuted for curiosity, and innovative sex toys became therapeutic medical
instruments.
Calling this show a play
about vibrators does not do it justice.
I guess for marketing purposes it can get tickets sold, but let’s not
lessen it’s integrity. Sure watching
prim and proper women (and a man) discovering orgasm via a clunky hand-held
appliance is funny. I mean the zee-zee-ing
of the noise alone is funny. It’s damn
funny.
What makes In the Next Room a great show is that
it is way more than a Vibrator Play. It is about transduction, the transference of
energy from one system to the next. On
one hand you have electricity replacing effort, like the on and off switching of
a light. On the other hand, there is the
intangible spiritual energy of intimacy, like the loving bond of a mother
breast-feeding a newborn baby.
Dr. Givings (Charlie Wingerter)
has developed an electronic vibrator that remedies the build up of certain body
fluids that cause hysteria. Under the
doctor’s supervision the rapid vibrations of his device cause a paroxysm, and a
release of the congested fluids inside the womb. Dr. Givings is devoted to the scientific
method and any connection of his medical treatment relating to sexual pleasure
is completely lost to him. Wingerter
portrays the good doctor with a scientific obsession and objectifying bedside
manner.
Mrs. Givings (Kaity
Talmage-Bowers) is brimming with energetic curiosity. Her attention shifts wildly in an attempt to
discover her place in the world. Kaity
Talmage-Bowers gives her character an amusing sense of longing, a joy to
watch.
The first patient we witness
surrendering to the pleasures of the vibrator is Mrs. Daldry (Aimee Janelle
Nelson). Mrs. Daldry is clearly damaged
and lonely, and Nelson’s portrayal is ecstatically funny while remaining
delicately sensitive. Mr. Daldry (Arthur
Pierce) finds his wife’s condition curious, but recognizes the need for her
daily dose of vibration.
Annie (Linda Swanson Brown)
is the dutiful doctor’s assistant. She
becomes an important emotional connection that the vibrator lacks. Elizabeth (Lisa Young) also fulfills an
important role as a wet nurse for Mrs. Givings.
Lisa Young has a magnetic emotional capability that becomes the
beautiful human cornerstone of this play.
Leo (Adam Perkes) is the
doctor’s male patient. It seems that
hysteria in men, while rare is quite common in “artists”. Leo gives it up to the humming intrusion of
the vibrator, and hoists this play’s second act up with foppish charm and
wit. Perkes is whirlwind of exquisite
energy, an actor driven with confident intent.
For me, Perkes gives a performance that is well worth the price of a
ticket.
There is a moment in the
second act when In the Next Room shifts
in energy. The comic tone becomes
something more meaningful and intimate. Like the alluring vibrato of a single
sustained violin note, it brings you in closer.
If I owned a bowler hat,
I would definitely tip it to Elliot Clough for providing the layers upon layers
of period style costumes. I also must
acknowledge the rest of the crew for their outstanding effort.
My highest commendation goes
to director Deb Flomberg, for embodying this production with moments of joyful
hysteria while respecting the intent of the play’s message. The result of her efforts transcend the
shameless appeal of In the Next Room, or the Vibrator Play,
proving it is so much more than the sum of its mechanical parts.
Equinox TheatreCompany presents the
Denver Premier of “In the
Next Room, or the Vibrator Play” by Sarah Ruhl through June 16, Friday and Saturday at 7:30
PM at the Bug Theatre.Tickets are $15.
