“Feminism has failed women.” That is the prompt given to the debate team of an elite all-boys prep school one hour before the final match of their high school careers. As they develop compelling arguments to demolish their sister school, a "rumor" leaks about their team that threatens to blow up everything they have worked for. What begins as a riotously funny satire turns into a sharp exploration of power and privilege, from high school to the highest circles of political influence. Following multiple sold-out runs in Australia, playwright Emmanuelle Mattana’s Trophy Boys makes its American premiere in a thrilling new production featuring Mattana as part of the cast. Directed by 2024 Tony Award-winner Danya Taymor (The Outsiders), Trophy Boys is a provocative comedy about the singular pursuit of victory, and the cost of reaching it.
Gender differences can be heavy-going material for the stage, but here Mattana manages with real wit and insight to highlight the warping and depressing affects that gender norms can instill on young minds. In program notes, the writer asserts that gender is “not only learnt but taught” and urges us to examine our deep-seated notions about masculinity and see it for “a comical, absurd and ultimately disturbing performance.” The same could be said for this play.
Trophy Boys, which premiered in Australia in 2022, is satirical, not earnest, and in leaning too strongly into its manic theatricality, Taymor supports the playwright’s vision at the cost of coherence. The two events that should change the direction of the plot, bending it toward seriousness, do not successfully manage the turn.
| 2025 | Off-Broadway |
MCC Theater Off-Broadway Premiere Off-Broadway |
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