GroundWorks tackles Fat Pig, playwright/provocateur Neil LaBute's examination of relationships and body image
Living Large
by Martin Brady
If Neil LaBute's Fat Pig isn't perfect, it at least feeds into the public's prurient interest in obesity, body image and whatever else drives TV shows like The Biggest Loser to draw big ratings. LaBute uses some questionable tactics in advancing his plot, but even his somewhat clumsy manipulation of character and motivation can't sully the waters of his compelling premise: "Can a reasonably attractive and intelligent guy fall in love and sustain a relationship with a grossly overweight woman?"
That's hero Tom's dilemma, and for nearly two hours he fights the good fight, sloughing off the rude and bitchy comments of bigmouth co-worker Carter and ex-wannabe girlfriend Jeannie, who question his very sanity once it becomes known that he's dating Helen, a decidedly obese librarian.
Problem is, Helen is so darn nice and honest and understanding and patient — not to mention cheerfully self-deprecating and gifted with a genuine sense of humor — that Tom's crucible might be a no-brainer after all, especially when Helen's positive personal qualities are stacked up against the unpleasant negatives of his superficial, intrusive so-called friends.
Act 1 sets up the drama enticingly, as Tom and Helen go a-courtin', mostly in private. Then Act 2 positions the audience for a meaningful conclusion, when the increasingly public nature of their relationship finds Tom assessing his situation with an eye toward the realistic future.
It may not be brilliantly executed drama, but Fat Pig exploits its intriguing scenario well enough, while the GroundWorks Theatre production, under the attentive direction of Paul J. Cook, benefits hugely from the presence of Amanda Lamb as its large leading lady. Lamb definitely represents the poignant everyday struggles of those among the ranks of the physically challenged — projecting brains, a winning personality and the capacity for love, yet trapped in a body that risks ridicule and social rejection. And while it may seem almost cliché to assess Lamb's performance as "courageous," there's no denying her confident, graceful and respectful approach to her character. In addition, the play's final scene is set on a beach, where Lamb bravely wears a bathing suit, exhibiting a lot of poise.
Michael Coursey is Tom, and he appears to be still feeling his way through a fairly challenging role. Ironically, he also projects a kind of naïveté that helps to affirm the credible storytelling, mainly because a more jaded personality might not be so open to such a relationship in the first place. Still, Coursey comes off pretty self-consciously, though director Cook pulls enough humanity out of him to keep us engaged to the very end.
Wilhelm Peters is the prickly, unlikable Carter. He does well with his boisterous, mean-spirited speeches and cynical attitudes. Lauren Atkins is the jilted Jeannie, and she takes sufficient umbrage in reacting to Tom's choice of new partner, while also providing the slender, more socially accepted physique to contrast with Lamb's appearance.
Fat Pig is curiously provocative theater that challenges its audience to reconsider conventional notions of romantic attraction and to ponder the biases brought to every personal relationship.
Go team!
The soccer mom has become one of the more prominent stereotypes of modern American culture. The phrase conjures images of comfortable suburban living, minivans and SUVs, and kid-centric days spent in transit from one place to another, with an accent on the sport that has for many parents replaced football or baseball as the chief athletic pastime for their children.
Prevalent as soccer moms are, it's not surprising that playwright Kathleen Clark has determined that the phenomenon is ripe for dramatic examination. Clark's Secrets of a Soccer Mom, currently enjoying its Nashville premiere by Tennessee Women's Theatre Project, provides a few insights, though its overall emotional impact is lacking.
Director Maryanna Clarke appears to have granted her three actors free rein on the Looby Theater stage, and Nancy Whitehead, Amanda Card-McCoy and Brittany Nelson try to work magic with a script that, while cataloging many typical contemporary motherly concerns, also demands lots of energy while yielding relatively few rewards.
Female audience members might identify with the characters' overlapping issues: career frustrations, marital tensions, parenting problems and, of course, the soccer mom culture, which demands a kind of blind allegiance to the group mentality and the maintenance of a certain public persona. Here, the ladies sit cheering on the sidelines, but when their interest in the soccer starts to wane, their interest in baring their souls to each other increases. So it goes for about 90 uninterrupted minutes, in a single act without intermission.
Whitehead, as the oldest of the moms, offers the sharpest portrayal. Her character at least has experience on her side, which results in wittier repartee and a vantage point infused with irony. The other two players flail about with less focus, and the general staging offers little in the way of imagination or surprises. There are, however, a fair number of rapid entrances and exits, plus a good deal of random hollering at imaginary offspring.
Secrets of a Soccer Mom is not one of TWTP's strongest efforts, but the play might possibly draw in a certain demographic — those curious to know what these sports-minded if somewhat desperate housewives are all about.
The show continues through March 14.
Email arts@nashvillescene.com.
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