Based on the nonfiction book of the same name by Rachel Hills, The Sex Myth: A Devised Play is a deeply personal, startlingly moving production presented at the HERE Arts Center in New York City this past August.
Thursday, September 14, 2017
The Complications of Sex: The Sex Myth
Based on the nonfiction book of the same name by Rachel Hills, The Sex Myth: A Devised Play is a deeply personal, startlingly moving production presented at the HERE Arts Center in New York City this past August.
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4 comments:
I LOVE the idea of this play. It is often found that sex is not talked about ever, by anyone, and even avoided. Schools still emphasize abstinence instead of explaining anything, except that one health requirement where they explain the organs and such but nothing of real value. Sex is so taboo and hidden if even mentioned in conversations. The idea of this play exploring not only sex but the messy jungle that sex really is, is wonderful. The article explained that the play shows sex from that first time to a variety of different experiences that have actually happened. It follows a variety of people. That is FANTASTIC. Instead of talking about it, it shows it and it touches on very important issues as well - Rape. Something that is very influential is the fact that it's a play as well. I once read in an article that people don't always remember words or visual cues but will remember very deeply how something made them feel. The fact that it is a play must very much add to that effect. Especially so if it is done well and can make the audience feel the horror that is rape yet understand the mess that is sex. It can help people understand that sex is an experience that everyone has, that can be similar to ones own, or different. Most importantly it brings attention to sex which is something that needs to happen.
One of the things I find most compelling about devised theater is that it tends to really highlight the artists involved, and it is frequently as useful and thought provoking and educational for the performers and devisors as it is for the audiences who view the work. Yet I fear the shift in perspective and social handling of sexual matters they are trying to inspire will simply be redundant for the audiences coming to see this work. Theater is often considered a "liberal" undertaking, and with a title as blunt and unambiguous as "The Sex Myth", the work is already culling down its audience to those who care about perspectives and art centered around sex, rather than enticing in a broader audience, and then working a little more subtly to convey a message. Whether the art world likes it or not, this is a niche topic, with limited appeal. I think this work absolutely has a place, and I am glad there are artists invested in bringing this exploration to life, however I am saddened that this work will likely reach only the few who already care.
This sounds like a great play and like it deals with important issues, but I keep thinking about the actors who are doing this. Devising a play like this would require opening up parts of yourself and your past that you are used to disguising and guarding. Were the actors fulling informed that taking this job would require sole searching and exposé or were they just told “we are devising a play about sex”? It is one thing to have a group of artists who want to do this and are aware of what they are doing and quite another to hire actors and only later tell them that they will need to share intimate details and feelings with an audience.
Sex, sexuality, and gender are extremely complicated issues constructed and defined by the culture we live in. No one is separate from the influence of the others. The more you look at it and examine the spectrum of identities the more diverse and tangled it gets. The world used to believe a person had only two options in each category (and that sex and gender were the same thing…). We now know that to be very wrong in all three cases. Productions like this only scratch the surface of the personal sexual experience. I worked on a devised piece this summer titled “Body Double” concerning the development of female sexuality and body image. The “play” was one small window looking at a few people’s experiences and a narrow timeline and yet had so much to unpack. It is important to talk about the issue of identity as it becomes a rising political topic. The societal policing of sexuality (through social parameters enforced by stigma and violence or written laws) continues to become more apparent in our daily lives and under the current administration.
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