Your Mother's Vagina

What I liked

I loved following the characters’ lives over a span of years. These characters are very interesting and lovable (in spite of their acid wit.) The production did a wonderful job revealing how the characters face continuing challenges in eccentric and very humane ways. The bar setting became this kind of neutral universe where time and space are suspended and the two characters could deepen their affection for one another. The one-liners sprinkled throughout the play were definitely “Veep” worthy!!

What I didn't like

I think opening night jitters may have caused this but for much of the first act, the actors didn’t seem to be listening to one another and really letting things land. There was a forced-ness to the performance that I think was intended to represent the characters need to “protest too much” but it came off as two really good actors forcing their way to the middle and not letting themselves be affected by each other. Played the detached cover tactics sometimes obscured the deeper needs of the character and all I saw was the banter and cleverness without the drive underneath. It was talked about but I didn’t see it dramatically unfold. These are two wonderful actresses and I know as the show settles in, they’ll be able to let it breath a bit and let the moment to moment emotional events happen.

The sounds of the phones and tweets were a little too heavy handed and the reactions to the barrage of messages needed practice.

I’m on the fence about the projections with the Stephan Colbert style commentary. Sometimes it was really on-point and sometimes I found it distracting.

My overall impression

Your Mother’s Vagina is a hilarious and completely unsentimental examination of the overwhelming challenges many women face as they navigate the murky territory of sexuality and reproduction. The fast paced and razor sharp dialogue between the two female characters, played with exquisite eccentricity by Beth Gudenrath and Rachel Hirshorn, kept me laughing as the disintegrating fabric of the characters’ lives revealed profound states of desperation. For audience members who have been through the ringer of egg harvesting, miscarriages, unwanted pregnancies strained relations with mates or the unquenchable desire to become pregnant, Your Mother’s Vagina offers deep recognition, levity and a reminder that you’re not alone. To those of us who haven’t been through it all, the play offers an opportunity to develop understanding and compassion for the desperation and confusion that can afflict even the most most intelligent, creative and fiercely courageous women among us.