The Good Body, by Eve Ensler
Directed by Laura Moore
Rated R
SHOWING:
February 10, 11, 12, 16, 17, 18, 19
Thingamajig Theatre is sticking with one of its favorite tradition this February, by opening its 6th “Locals Show,” where local individuals brave the spotlight and challenge themselves in a new arena.
The Good Body opens on February 10 and features the fantastic new voices of: Terri Prichard, who plays Eve, a famous feminist and body advocate who can’t believe how obsessed she is with her stomach… Joyce Ryan, who plays a woman in her “third week with the vulva rejuvenation esteem group”… Rossana DuFour, Robin Brobst, Rebecca Anderson, Devina St. Clair… and Joan Ward as the famous Helen Gurley Brown — the woman behind Cosmo.
The Good Body is a touching and humorous serious of monologues written by Eve Ensler, the author behind the sensational Vagina Monologues.
The story begins with Eve’s tortured relationship with her own “post-forties” stomach and her skirmishes with everything from Ab Rollers to fad diets and fascistic trainers in an attempt get the “flabby badness” out. Eve is joined by the voices of women from L.A. to Kabul, whose obsessions are also laid bare. A young Latina candidly critiques her humiliating “spread,” a stubborn layer of fat that she calls “a second pair of thighs.” The wife of a plastic surgeon recounts being systematically reconstructed — inch by inch — by her “perfectionist” husband.
“It’s a thought-provoking study about women and their tragic and often more hilarious and absurd obsession with their bodies, and just wanting to be good,” explains Ms. Prichard, the actress who plays Eve. “This subject has plagued women for centuries comparing ourselves to the insane standards of today’s society.”
“The honor of being chosen to portray Eve, has had an extraordinary effect on me. Being able to restore my once great sense of humor, as well as touching the deepest wounds in me has allowed an even deeper soul cleansing and new perspective for me to wear on my sleeve. I feel transformed and I pray each person, (by the way this is not just a chick thing… men will completely relate as they’ve had to live with us and listen to us and listen to us and listen to us…) will walk away from this and realize that giving a voice to everything is critical. I look forward to you sharing your story with me and hopefully we can share a smile and maybe a tear and realize that acceptance with a smile is the best prescription for well-being.”
The Good Body runs Thursday through Saturday at 7pm and Sundays at 2pm, February 10 – 19 at the Pagosa Springs Center for the Arts. Get your girlfriends together for a great night of laughs and reflection to support the amazing group of local ladies braving it all to bare it all onstage.
Ms. Ensler wants to soften the ever-fraught relationship between American women and their bodies, to expose the destructive formulas that lead them to assuage their insecurities by punishing their flesh… rich in pointed, amusing details… forthrightly funny… bristling with wisecracks [and] exotically harvested snippets of wisdom. — NY Times
Passionate, funny, frank, revealing, even shocking, and genuinely committed to improving life on this planet. — San Francisco Chronicle
