Sarah Mayhew's love for theatre was ignited on the Tennessee River in Scottsboro, Alabama, when she played a crow in The Wizard of Oz. Earning a BA in Musical Theatre from Birmingham-Southern College, this third-year MFA Performance and Pedagogy student is in the middle of her thesis project, directing this spring's production of The Secretaries written by The Five Lesbian Brothers, an American theatre troupe comprised of Maureen Angelos, Babs Davy, Dominique Dibbell, Peg Healey and Lisa Kron.
For her thesis, Sarah wanted to direct a piece that investigated the darker side of womanhood and femininity, and cited a quote from Elana Dyewood that captures this sentiment:
Almost every woman I have ever met has a secret belief that she is just on the edge of madness, that there is some deep, crazy part within her, that she must be on guard constantly against ‘losing control' — of her temper, of her appetite, of her sexuality, of her feelings, of her ambition, of her secret fantasies, of her mind.
Drawn to the idea of the primal, the carnal, and the Bacchanalian, Sarah wants to explore what may happen if women were to shed the constraints of cultural femininity and succumb to their sometimes hidden and potentially dangerous appetites. The Secretaries answers the call with just the right combination of horror, camp, satire, and somehow, comedy.
The idea of feminism leaps through the pages of this text. Sarah believes feminism in this play comes from exploring internalized misogyny– specifically, the subversion of troupes we've seen played out in fiction. So often, commentary about cultural attitudes towards women manifests itself in the form of men inflicting violence upon women.
The Five Lesbian Brothers take a different approach in The Secretaries. It depicts a group of women acting as the enforcers of their own oppression. This group, or rather, cult, polices every detail about its members: nail length, dress code, weight/body shape, and even sexual activity. Each secretary watches the others carefully and never hesitates to report any faults she may find. Everything about their day-to-day lives focuses on establishing restrictions for the twenty-eight days leading up to their “monthly event” in the woods. Only there do they allow themselves to surrender to their primal urges, indulging in as much food, booze, and violence as they can stand.
Throughout rehearsal, Sarah has made it a point for her actors to feel safe on stage, working extensively with an intimacy choreographer. Relatively new in the theatre industry, intimacy choreography creates boundaries for performers—something as simple as a touch on the cheek. It gives power back to the most vulnerable people in the room, working to alleviate the pressure to say “yes” just to avoid being perceived as “difficult to work with.” An intimacy choreographer treats these intimate moments like a dance, complete with counts, using de-sexualized language. They establish specificity in terms of where on the body actors can touch, how long they can touch, and with what level of intensity. The choreography helps keep the moments of intimacy consistent from night to night so actors always know what to expect.
The Secretaries plays February 7-12 in The CH Foundation The Legacy of Christine DeVitt Black Box Theatre. Tickets are $15 ($5 for students with an ID) and can be purchased online or by phone at 806.742.3603. Don't miss this amazing show!