Show: Skin
Theater: Dangerous Productions
Genre: Theater, Psychological Gore
What's It All About:
"Black women in search of beauty are lured to the services of a benevolent plastic surgeon. This startling new production by Oya Mae Duchess Davis cuts into the grim truths of racial identity and white privilege in this bloody and terrifying horror story. How far would you go to be beautiful?"
What We Thought:
So far at the TCHF, we've seen psychological horror, dance, short films, dark comedy, and music, but something has been in short supply: GORE. Dangerous Productions, as usual, brings the bloody. This time, however, they also bring a new play by up-and-coming playwright Oya Mae Duchess-Davis that explores the horror that lies behind the fact that "in our society Black women are shamed for having certain features that are then declared beautiful once they are put on a white woman" (from the Director's Note). This show is thought-provoking, and still a crowd-pleaser. (Not that they are mutually exclusive, I just thought it was interesting that this was the first standing o of the festival for us.). They bring the gore, and they really aim high. I love to see a show with such amazing ambitions and ideas for days.