• Slave Play

9/12/24 (Thurs), West End

I had not planned on subjecting myself to what sounded like another diatribe on racism, but having told a friend to select whatever he’d like, I couldn’t complain. The result was predictable in its blame-the-whites attitude.

The first half hour offers three scenes of interracial couples on a plantation in outrageous master-slave relationships, including whips and boot-licking. These turn out to be therapy sessions aimed at confronting the racism that is supposedly hurting their marriages. The couples – a women with a man who had initially been brought by her husband to spice up relations, a gay couple, and a seemingly normal couple – are brought together after their fantasy sessions to discuss their feelings with two therapists.

The entire show reflects the racist attitude of the writer in assuming that the couples’ problems are rooted in racism, specifically from the white side. I’ve heard it all before; the writer is beyond redemption. I don’t feel a need to reflect on it, though I did enjoy the mocking pseudo-intellectual observations by the lesbian shrinks, which were quite funny. While it’s true that this is low-hanging fruit, I wish the rest of the show had been on that level.

Kit Harrington (Game of Thrones) was particularly memorable as the (justifiably) cynical man frustrated by his wife’s endless berating of his alleged racism. His accusations made the most sense of any character. I’m not sure if the character was initially written as British or adapted to him, but at least it spreads the racism around and nicely heightens the difference with the others. He was brave to go fully nude given his fame, though I guess I wouldn’t be shy either if I had a body like that. The cast overall, which included original cast members from NY, was fine, let down only by the sensationalist material. They did not hold back in their gothic hysteria, which was at least interesting to watch.

None of our crowd was bowled over by this hectoring show. Not worth the time other than the considerable nudity.