MANIC tells the story of a neuro-divergent, Pansexual Jewish girl chasing fame while also having to tame her addiction demons. The rollercoaster that is Mental Health leads to addictive tendencies; she’s amped up on Adderall, she smokes some weed to get into a creative space, then she might take some mushrooms and think she’s the next incarnation of Marilyn Monroe. All those vices will be performed differently, as each drug is a different form of escapism and opens up a unique window to the character’s personality.
MANIC is about the inner journey of healing and how our parents fucked us up, even if they didn’t mean to. Issues of first-generation immigrant identity are explored and the generational trauma doesn’t stop there; it peeks through in the ways we view our bodies, too. How can we unlearn the euro-centric body standards of our mothers that made us ride the thin line between body dysmorphia and body positivity? Does being pansexual make you slutty or an explorer of the high seas? Well she’s in the 12 step program of Sex and Love Addicts Anonymous, and it’s a central story telling device.
The perspective of an ADHD mind is pivotal in this non-linear approach to showmanship. There’s a mixture of cabaret, parody singing, comedy, voice-over & dynamic, provocative multi-media. The music is nostalgic – especially for millennials – and the contents is a therapy session for anyone with a family and a sex life. MANIC is the stage adaptation of the TV show of the same name.
