Diversionary Theatre's new artistic director, Sherri Eden Barber, kicks off her inaugural season by bringing back powerhouse performer Shakina for a world premiere production with a title designed to provoke.
Proceed with caution if you don't want to be challenged — or possibly offended.
We're not talking cats
Since I grew up with James Bond movies, I wanted to remind folks that when "Goldfinger" came out in 1964, the name of Honor Blackman's character, Pussy Galore, was not allowed in U.S. promotional materials. More than half a century later, Shakina has chosen to call her latest theatrical production "Manifest Pussy." And guess what? The word is still stirring controversy.
So what's so scary — or offensive — about the word "pussy"?
"I think in general, people are afraid of powerful women," Shakina said. "By people, I mean men, and the social structures that they built. I think back to the 2016 election campaign, and that word was being thrown around a lot. It was called locker room talk, and it was excused, and it was overlooked in a way that masked other morality postures. And I'm pushing back on that in a Pussy Riot way to say, this word is powerful because we're powerful. And we shouldn't be afraid of the word because we shouldn't be afraid of our power. We shouldn't be afraid of our bodies. And the journey to reclaim all of that power is the story of my show."
Barber is both the artistic director of Diversionary Theatre and the director of "Manifest Pussy."
"Don't let them take our joy. Don't let them turn us against each other," Barber added. "Let's continue fighting for one another and let's continue celebrating what it is to manifest pussy rather than seeing it as a dirty word. Ask yourself, why do I think that way? How has it been used against me? How has it been an attack? Why can't we have 'Manifest Pussy'?"
The title actually comes from a lyric in the opening song: "From east to west coast, I want to make them shout manifest pussy."
For Shakina, "the idea is, ultimately, how do we make feminism fresh, empowering, fun, sacred and profane for a new generation. Not just trans feminism, but just like pussy power in general."
Love as revolution
For her inaugural season as artistic director, Barber gave the season the theme, "Love as Revolution."
"So in the face of everything that we're going through right now, I was like, well, how do we love ourselves? It was a big decision to go from three shows to four shows. And I said, the government is going to make us feel like less. We're going to feel like more," Barber explained. "They're going to take away and we're going to add. We've been there before, we've gotten through it before, and we're going to double down on what we're trying to do. And this is the time where we need each other even more. And in trying to galvanize our community, I thought, what's going to bring us together? Love as a revolution. So the first show in the season is about 'Manifest Pussy,' is about loving yourself."
A glam rock odyssey
"Manifest Pussy" serves up a unique show. It is a glam rock odyssey with a dose of stand-up comedy.
"I think people come expecting a fun rock show and then they get smacked upside the head with theater," Shakina said. "I compare it to the 'Pee-wees' Playhouse' of my pussy."
It is also a very personal story.
"I've always dealt with my personal issues in a public forum as a performance artist," Shakina said. "Ever since I was really young, I just felt that if I'm going through this, someone else might be going through it. And if I have the wherewithal to talk about it on stage, that might help the person who isn't able to do that. So I've always put myself out there at the edge of my own comfort.
"This word is powerful because we're powerful. And we shouldn't be afraid of the word because we shouldn't be afraid of our power."Shakina
"And then when I knew that I was going to transition medically, I was just beginning to make a name for myself as a director out in New York City. And I thought, no one's going to take me seriously if I show up in the rehearsal room in a sundress. Because it was like 12 years ago, when the world was just not ready. There was no trans representation in the Broadway community. And so I thought, OK, if I'm going to do this, if I want my community to understand where I'm coming from, I have to speak to them in their language. So I'm going to write a show about it."
Shakina's first show had a cabaret format and focused on her motivations for going to Thailand to undergo gender confirmation surgery.
"I was facing a year long recovery from the surgery. And the only way I really knew how to get through that was to put a date on the calendar for another show," Shakina said. "And so on the one-year anniversary of my surgery, I did a show called 'Post-Op.' And after I put that show on, partially motivated by HB2, the first anti-trans bill that was passed in North Carolina in 2016, I realized that the two shows just wanted to be one show. I could smash them together and take them on the road. And so that's how 'Manifest Pussy' was born."
"I really believe in bridging the gap between the sacred and the profane and shaking things up in a way that makes people realize that maybe they've swallowed a little bit of hypocrisy."Shakina
The show also contains what Shakina calls "ritual sacrifice." She just seems to enjoy pushing buttons.
"I really try to resist shame, even if it's a fake-it-till-you-make-it game for myself," Shakina said. "I grew up and had so many experiences of being made to feel unwelcome at the table because of who I was as a queer person, as a trans person, and especially in arenas of faith and community, which are so important to me. I faced experiences of rejection really early on that I felt were not fair.
"And so I wanted to push back against that and create a bigger table for people. I really believe in bridging the gap between the sacred and the profane and shaking things up in a way that makes people realize that maybe they've swallowed a little bit of hypocrisy insofar as they've built a relationship between their sexual selves and their spiritual selves.
"That's something that I feel like is a divine quest for all of us to bridge. And as I've undertaken that, I've come up with so many obstacles and pitfalls and lessons and hardships and heartbreak, but also blessings and curiosities and expansive pleasure. And I just want everyone else to have that opportunity."
"Manifest Pussy" is on the Diversionary mainstage now through Oct. 12. Just as the title has merited warnings, Diversionary notes this content warning for the play as well: "'Manifest Pussy' contains smoke and haze effects, references to suicidal ideation, self-harm and sexual violence. Some very quick-moving graphic images are contained in the projection design."
