The latest offering of my Steppenwolf Theater subscription is a play titled “Sex With Strangers.” I am still in shock over this play. First of all, it is very current. The characters and the content of the play is now. I thought I was hip, but after viewing this story I am not sure.
Sex With Strangers has two characters: Ethan and Olivia. He is twenty four, she is thirty something. Ethan is a Blogger who writes about his sexual conquests. He has writen a book about the one hundred or more sexual different encounters he has within a single year. While he is writing, he blogs about his encounters. Olivia is a serious novelist who has no knowledge of the internet and of Blogging for fame.
I had serious problems with the story within the first act. The play opens with Olivia reading a book while sitting in a modestly outfitted home. There is a knock on the door. She ignores it. The knock turns into a pounding and shouting. A man’s voice is shouting let me in. This is where I have a problem. She goes to the door and lets the guy, a complete stranger, in.
They talk to each other like they know each other, but in fact, are complete strangers. The place turns out to be in Michigan during the winter. Olivia is there to write. Ethan went there to do the same. He is totally disappointed however, because there is no internet service. He is suddenly lost. No phone, no computer connection, he is stuck with Olivia and the old fashioned method of communicating via conversation.
Within the first act and only after a short time of getting to know each other two complete strangers have sex. The only thing they have in common is that they write. The sex scene is portrayed by the set going dark. In the first half of the play before before the intermission, the lights go dark four times.
Although I was totally shocked by the content and the culture portrayed by these characters, this play was totally enjoyable, and understandable.
Stephen Louis Grush who played Ethan only had one flaw. He was tattooed over much of his body. The ‘toos, although current and contemporary, left me wondering about the guys sexuality. He also resembled a man I knew on my job. I kept seeing Chris not Ethan.
Olivia played by Sally Murphy was totally hot. I only hope she has mopre sense in real life than her character had.
Both actors gave very convincing performances. All in all, this story was among the very best I have seen at Steppenwolf.
Five stars * * * * *
Filed under: Society, Theater, Writer | Tagged: Jessica Thebus, Laura Eason, Michigan, Sally Murphy, Sexology, Sexuality, Stephen Louis Grush, steppenwolf, Steppenwolf Theatre Company | Leave a comment »
