Adelina Anthony. Bruising for Besos. LA Gay and Lesbian Center. 3/13/09.
Adelina Anthony's Bruising for Besos has been extended until April 19, so now that you can still see it, perhaps you should. It is a lovely, melancholy piece about love and emotional and physical abuse, which means it is extremely difficult to watch. I was at first reluctant to write about it, because I love Anthony's work and commitment in general, but I had some mixed feelings about the piece. I was thoroughly impressed by Anthony's skill at weaving in and out of various characters to make this a one-woman show with many roles and many voices. Her skill as an actress is beautifully demonstrated in Bruising for Besos; watching her deftly switch between characters could be reason enough to go see it while you can.
It's an intensely personal play, however, and sometimes that sense of the personal is too heavy-handed. At points, the piece seems overwritten, as if it were trying too hard to be literary and therefore felt self-conscious. Sometimes it felt as if there weren't enough distance between Anthony as playwright, Anthony as actor, and Yoli as character.
The play takes place on a beautiful, haunting set depicting a broken down car on the side of the road outside San Antonio and that in itself spoke to me. The set is so powerful that I wish I were more inspired by the play's sense of space and time. Something about it as a memory play didn't work for me, even though it should have. I wonder if perhaps I am just temporarily frustrated with solo work and would have preferred this to be a play with multiple actors playing the multiple characters. I may wish for more theatrical magic and less monologue, but what Anthony does, she does well.
Despite my mixed feelings, I think this play is absolutely worth seeing and thinking about and discussing. It is lovely and contemplative and at times stunningly well-acted. It's a powerful departure from Anthony's previous work and as such, deserves recognition and celebration. I'm so glad it's getting the audience to extend (twice!) and if you haven't seen it, you should go.
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1 comments:
Hi Nicole,
I am soooooooo glad you wrote this, because there seems to be a huge confusion around “Bruising for Besos.” I have never called it an autobiographical piece or a docudrama—I call it “personal,” because I did experience domestic violence as a child. But “Bruising for Besos” is a complete work of fiction—punto final. None of the performed scenes ever took place in my real life—and certainly not in the way I shaped them, i.e. never got stranded on the road, never had a “Lori” experience, and never went 10 years without talking to my mother, etc. Of course, my goal as the playwright and performer is to make the audience believe otherwise—to make one believe in Yoli’s difficult story… as uncomfortable as it’s supposed to be.
And, honestly, I know a lot of folks get confused and don’t always know how to receive my work (comedic or dramatic)—so much time spent on “Did that really happen to her?” Lol. Sure, I make it a point to be transparent about how the art-making process for some of us means the personal life is fodder, a jumping point for the creative act, and just pure inspiration.
Anyway, lots to discuss, and when I’m done with the series I’m going to publish the book on the process, and will talk at length why it had to be a solo series and not an ensemble work—everything from economics (the real lack of financial support from institutions to produce this kind of work if it had been an ensemble piece) to the very real aesthetic choice of questions around form=content (the efficacy of progressive queer solo performance). Anyway, while that future book of essays may not clarify everyone’s questions (it shouldn’t), at least it will explain the theories, concepts and vision for the work from the artist’s perspective.
Thank you for coming out to the show and supporting my work as usual! I’m a fan of your blog and, again, I’m so glad you expressed your mixed feelings. (I’d hate to be known as an artist that’s always easily understood or digestible… some things should get stuck in the throat, the gut, or the heart.)
Abrazos,
Adelina
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