• 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.

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