Review: COLLECTIVE RAGE at MILDRED'S UMBRELLA

“Laughter is the only free emotion - the only one that can't be compelled. We can be made to fear. We can even be made to believe we're in love because, if we're kept dependent and isolated for long enough, we bond in order to survive. But laughter explodes like an aha! It comes when the punch line changes everything that has gone before, when two opposites collide and make a third, and when we suddenly see a new reality...laughter is an org*sm of the mind.”

- Gloria Steinem, MY LIFE ON THE ROAD 

Jen Silverman’s play COLLECTIVE RAGE would make Gloria Steinem laugh, and it seems only appropriate to open the twenty-fifth season of Mildred’s Umbrella with something like this, just as an icon passed. The company examines women on the stage, and nothing says the collective feminine like this particular queer fantasia that doesn’t have a “Y” chromosome to be found (save for its director, but more on him later). It’s about five women named Betty who intersect in many ways. There are dinner parties, sleepovers, an attempt to stage a play (based on a famous Shakespeare passage), boxing lessons, and work on trucks. It’s only women, and we only see each character through their lens. And if you want a taste of the humor it offers, here is the full title - “Collective Rage: A Play In 5 Betties; In Essence, A Queer And Occasionally Hazardous Exploration; Do You Remember When You Were In Middle School And You Read About Shackleton And How He Explored The Antarctic?; Imagine The Antarctic As A Pussy And It’s Sort Of Like That.” The bulk of this play talks about female genitalia, but in a very irreverent and funny way. It’s almost like being in a women’s locker room at a very diverse gym. But don’t let any of that make you think this isn’t a fun romp that just happens to have nineteen fast scenes that focus on vaginas, because that is exactly what COLLECTIVE RAGE offers. It's never preachy or political, and it's hard to believe it was written by Silverman in 2016. It speaks to the now easily. 

One thing Mildred’s Umbrella always gets right is casting, and this show sports five of the best women working in Houston theatre. Sammi Sicinski, Samantha Walker, Jeana Magallon, Cindy Wang, and Nonie Hilliard make an exceptional ensemble, and I couldn’t imagine a better group to bring this to life. These five are funny and, when needed, easily offer dramatic revelations to go with the laughs. Sassy, smart, sarcastic, and sincere. This is a new reality they are offering, and these five construct it from Jen Silverman’s script with grace and friendly ease that make you think the best part of this revolution is that it’s a party. They have all come to play! And you are invited to question gender, identity, sexuality, and how you fit in along with them. There are moments that are just stunning: Sammi’s rants on the news, Samatha’s puppet routines, Jeana’s misguided understanding of theater, Cindy’s emotional vulnerability, and Nonie’s ease at making gender fluidity look like what it should be, a non-issue. These are shrewd and ingenious performances that say a lot, but again, you mainly laugh with them. And that is something powerful. 

Don’t assume there isn’t some male energy floating around the room. It’s baffling to think the director is Rhett Martinez because he has a “Y” chromosome and is actually married to one of the “Betties” in real life. Yet he has staged this so immaculately, and I am sure a lot of his process was to get out of the way and let the women talk about their private parts. He supplied freedom to explore. COLLECTIVE RAGE is well directed and moves the way it should. Sound design from yet another dude, John Peeples, offers distinctly confrontational feminine rock from people like Courtney Love, Joan Jett, Peaches, and the Runaways. It’s a wonderful tribute to the “girls with guitars” section of your vinyl collection. Lee Barker has constructed a set that beautifully evokes the feminine and even lady bits if you squint in the right way. Aaron Garrett’s slides and lighting work well, too. Krystal Uchem’s costume work tells the story of the butches and femmes extremely well. The production value elevates the intimate space upstairs in the Spring Street Galleries. 

I never thought I would have such a good time watching five women talk about their sexual organs, but I absolutely understood every moment as if I had been lucky enough to have been assigned female at birth. Jennifer Decker’s company has certainly found ways to celebrate the feminine voice, and COLLECTIVE RAGE is a perfect way to continue twenty-five years of doing just that. These five women have a lot to say, and they do it in such a hilarious and ingenious way thanks to Jen Silverman’s insightful script. You’ve got everything here - a great script, a stellar cast, a solid director, and a production team that knows how to make this all work. But most of all, you have a voice to listen to, and a laugh to change what has gone before. Rest in power, Gloria Steinem. You should have seen this production from Mildred's Umbrella. You would have loved it.  

COLLECTIVE RAGE plays upstairs in the Spring Street Studios through September 19th. The show runs 90 minutes without an intermission and moves very quickly. Reservations are encouraged because the house is intimate. 

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