Theatre Alliance of Winston Salem | Director and Scenic Designer: Jamie Lawson
EATING RAOUL by: Jed Feuer, lyrics by Boyd Graham, and a book by Paul Bartel and Richard BlackburnEating Raoul is a musical filled with murder, sex, funny dialogue and cheesy songs. It is hard to not be wrapped up in the comedy and ridiculousness of the piece. Anything goes, because you never know what will happen next.
Mary and Paul Bland are exactly that at the beginning of the musical: “bland”. Everyone around them is lively and loose, with fun flattering and carefree costumes, whereas the Blands’ are a few years behind the times in dress and have a more conservative and rigid feel about their appearance. Mary, while always dressed very body conscious, begins to discover her sexual appetite and sex appeal half way through the musical. In response her appearance has a sexier feel that progresses throughout the rest of the musical. Paul,desperately trying to cling to his conservative lifestyle, eventually reaches a point where he is so uptight (for fear of losing Mary) that he regresses even further. Instead of loosening up like Mary does he becomes even more up-tight and wears a three piece suit to the low key swingers club in hopes of reminding Mary of how things used to be, only to fail. Finally in the end they have both become more comfortable with their lives and reach compromises that make both parties happy. |
Photos courtesy of:
Theatre Alliance Winston-Salem & UNCSA |