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Article IndexSmart variations on being an American mom comprise a lively show from Primary Stages
BY MICHAEL SOMMERS
NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM
OFF BROADWAY REVIEW
Theresa Rebeck, Leslie Ayvazian, Cheryl L. West and Beth Henley are the best known playwrights among the dozen writers who contribute works to “Motherhood Out Loud,” a winning collection of bittersweet reflections about being a mom.
Even those of us who are merely uncles can easily appreciate the pleasures and pains of American motherhood – and gay fatherhood, too — expressed through such lively contemporary voices.
Opening on Tuesday at 59E59 Theaters in a spirited New York premiere by Primary Stages, “Motherhood Out Loud” was first seen at Hartford Stage, and appears very likely to be produced by companies far and wide in future seasons.
It’s an easygoing show with universal appeal: Practically everybody is a mom in one way or another.
Zipping along in 90 minutes, some 20 pieces are arranged in five suites representing chronological stages of motherhood from birth towards the inevitable. Sleep deprivation, sex education and college embarkation are among some of the mileposts denoting the passage of years.
Voiced by the four-member ensemble, each movement begins swiftly with a pungent medley of usually comical contrasting experiences written by Michele Lowe.
Some of the material presented here is fairly light, such as Lisa Loomer’s “New in the Motherhood” piece regarding a snarky young mom being none too thrilled with too many playground hours wasted among other women who enjoy it more. Lameece Issaq’s witty, wise “Nooha’s List” involves PMS and teen daughters in a Muslim household.
Perhaps the scariest – and most touching — is Lowe’s “Queen Esther” anecdote from the mother of a seven-year-old Jewish boy who is showing obvious signs of gender confusion.
Other parts are thoughtful, such as Rebeck’s gentle “Baby Bird” piece about raising an adoptive Chinese daughter. Or wistful, like Luanne Rice’s “My Almost Family” monologue about nearly becoming a stepmother. Jessica Goldberg’s “Stars and Stripes” involves a woman thinking about her son stationed in Afghanistan. David Cale’s “Elizabeth” concerns a divorced man who moves back home with his mom.
