Hot 'N Throbbing
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''Hot 'N' Throbbing'' is a 1994 one-act play written by
Pulitzer Prize The Pulitzer Prizes () are 23 annual awards given by Columbia University in New York City for achievements in the United States in "journalism, arts and letters". They were established in 1917 by the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made his fo ...
-winning
playwright A playwright or dramatist is a person who writes play (theatre), plays, which are a form of drama that primarily consists of dialogue between Character (arts), characters and is intended for Theatre, theatrical performance rather than just Readin ...
and
Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...
professor
Paula Vogel Paula Vogel (born November 16, 1951) is an American playwright. She is known for her provocative explorations of complex social and political issues. Much of her work delves into themes of psychological trauma, abuse, and the complexities of hum ...
. The play is a confrontational statement on the intersection of
pornography Pornography (colloquially called porn or porno) is Sexual suggestiveness, sexually suggestive material, such as a picture, video, text, or audio, intended for sexual arousal. Made for consumption by adults, pornographic depictions have evolv ...
and
domestic violence Domestic violence is violence that occurs in a domestic setting, such as in a marriage Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes r ...
. It features adult language, mild violence, and full frontal male nudity.


Production history

The play had a workshop at the Circle Repertory Theatre, New York City, in October 1992. The play was developed with help from grants from the
National Endowment for the Arts The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created in 1965 as an independent agency of the feder ...
, a fellowship from the Bunting Institute,
Radcliffe College Radcliffe College was a Women's colleges in the United States, women's Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Cambridge, Massachusetts, that was founded in 1879. In 1999, it was fully incorporated into Harvard Colle ...
, and residencies at the Rockefeller Foundation at Bellagio Center, Italy, and the
Yaddo Yaddo is an artists' community located on a estate in Saratoga Springs, New York. Its mission is "to nurture the creative process by providing an opportunity for artists to work without interruption in a supportive environment.". On March  ...
Colony, as well as a grant from the Fund for New American Plays.Taylor, Markland
Review: Resident ; 'Hot ‘N’ Throbbing’"
''Variety'', May 2, 1994
It was produced at the
American Repertory Theater The American Repertory Theater (A.R.T.) is a professional not-for-profit theater in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1979 by Robert Brustein, the A.R.T. is known for its commitment to new American plays and music–theater explorations; to ne ...
(Cambridge, Massachusetts), in April 1994, directed by
Anne Bogart Anne Bogart (born September 25, 1951) is an American theatre and opera director. She is currently one of the artistic directors of SITI Company, which she founded with Japanese director Tadashi Suzuki in 1992. She is a professor at Columbia Uni ...
(''The Boston Herald'', April 18, 1994). It was also produced at the Kitchen Theatre Company (Ithaca, NY), in fall 1996, and at the Perishable Theatre (Providence, RI), in April–May 11, 1997. (''Providence Journal-Bulletin'', April 17, 1997) The play was produced by the Arena Stage, Washington, D.C., in September 1999, directed by
Molly Smith Molly Smith is an American theatre director and the artistic director of Arena Stage in Washington, D.C. from 1998 to 2023. During this period, she emphasized promoting new American plays, playwrights, and voices, producing 200 works. In addition ...
, the artistic director of Arena.Jones, Kenneth
"DC's Arena Season to be Hot `n' Throbbing `n' Start Sept. 3"
Playbill, September 3, 1999
Davidson, Susan

curtainup.com, September 9, 1999
The play opened
Off-Broadway An off-Broadway theatre is any professional theatre venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, inclusive. These theatres are smaller than Broadway theatres, but larger than off-off-Broadway theatres, which seat fewer tha ...
, produced by the
Signature Theatre Company Signature Theatre Company is a nonprofit Off Broadway theatre company located on West 42nd Street in New York City. It was founded in 1991 by James Houghton and is now led by Artistic Director Emily Shooltz. Signature is known for their season-l ...
, on March 28, 2005, and closed April 17, 2005. Directed by
Les Waters Les Waters (born in Cleethorpes, England) is a British theatre director. Waters was the Artistic Director of the Actors Theatre of Louisville. He has directed plays Off-Broadway and also at Berkeley Repertory Theatre and Actors Theatre. Career ...
, the cast included
Lisa Emery Lisa Emery is an American stage, film, and television actress. Emery is best known for playing Darlene Snell on Netflix series ''Ozark''. Early life Emery was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the daughter of an aspiring actress from Charlottes ...
(Charlene),
Elias Koteas Elias Koteas (; ; born March 11, 1961) is a Canadian actor who has performed in lead and supporting roles in numerous films and television series. He won the Canadian Screen Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role in the film '' Ararat'' (20 ...
(Clyde), and
Suli Holum Suli or Sulli can refer to: * Souli, region in Epirus, Greece, and home of the Souliotes * Abu Bakr bin Yahya al-Suli (c. 880 – 946), poet and scholar at the Abbasid court * Suliformes, proposed order of seabirds * Suli Lake in China * ''Suli'' ...
(Leslie Ann).


Characters

*Charlene; a middle aged single mother who writes
feminist Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideology, ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social gender equality, equality of the sexes. Feminism holds the position that modern soci ...
pornographic Pornography (colloquially called porn or porno) is sexually suggestive material, such as a picture, video, text, or audio, intended for sexual arousal. Made for consumption by adults, pornographic depictions have evolved from cave paintings ...
screenplays A screenplay, or script, is a written work produced for a film, television show (also known as a ''teleplay''), or video game by screenwriters (cf. ''stage play''). Screenplays can be original works or adaptations from existing pieces of writ ...
*Calvin; Charlene's fourteen-year-old son. Calvin is a bookish
voyeur Voyeurism is the Sexual attraction, sexual interest in or Human sexual activity, practice of watching other people engaged in intimate behaviors, such as undressing, Human sexual activity, sexual activity, or other actions of a private nature. ...
. *Leslie Ann; Charlene's sexually precocious daughter who dresses in clothing more suggestive than considered appropriate for a girl of fifteen. *Clyde; Charlene's violent and alcoholic ex-husband *The Voice-Over; an actress to stand in for Charlene's inner monologue and to enact her screenplay's contents onstage *The Voice; an actor to stand in for the inner monologue of other characters, primarily Clyde.


Plot synopsis

The central action of ''Hot 'N' Throbbing'' revolves around the arrival of Clyde late on a Friday night, drunk and intending to proposition Charlene despite a
restraining order A restraining order or protective order is an order used by a court to protect a person in a situation often involving alleged domestic violence, child abuse and neglect, assault, harassment, stalking, or sexual assault. Restraining and perso ...
against him because of past domestic violence. When Charlene refuses to admit him, Clyde forces his way inside and she ineptly shoots him in the buttocks. Now sobered and incapacitated, Clyde's wound is tended to by Charlene and they take the opportunity to reminisce about old times (as well as the play's ideas about
heterosexual Heterosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior between people of the opposite sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, heterosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexual attractions ...
relations) and reach an apparent reconciliation in which Charlene lets Clyde spend the night. Clyde explains that he came to his former home after patronizing an
adult bookstore A sex shop is a retailer that sells products related to adult sexual or erotic entertainment, such as sex toys, lingerie, pornography, and other related products. An early precursor of the modern sex shop was a chain of stores set up in Par ...
and failing to pick up a prostitute because of a lack of funds. As a final sex scene begins Clyde flies into a fit of rage and strangles Charlene with his belt.


Themes

The play is a statement in the vein of thought which attributes domestic violence to the direct influence of pornography. This is in contrast to ideologies such as
sex-positive feminism Sex-positive feminism, also known as pro-sex feminism, sex-radical feminism, or sexually liberal feminism, is a feminist movement centering on the idea that sexual freedom is an essential component of women's freedom. They oppose legal or soci ...
. A corollary subject is Vogel's indictment of attempts by pornographic film companies owned and operated by women to create positive alternatives to mainstream pornography. This is evoked by a flash-forward scene involving an adult actress who, despite believing that she is participating in a production utilizing one of Charlene's scripts, turns out to be the victim of a
snuff film A snuff film, snuff movie, or snuff video is a type of film, sometimes defined as being produced for profit or financial gain, that shows, or purports to show, scenes of actual homicide. The concept of snuff films became known to the general pub ...
. Also discussed is the dysfunction of modern family relationships, the craft of writing, and adolescence. Johnette Rodriguez, in her review in ''The Phoenix'' (Providence, RI), writes that "she ogelponders many questions about male/female relationships, about families and about American society, all related to an observation she makes in the introduction to the published version of the play: 'obscenity begins at home.' "Rodriguez, Johnette
"All sexed up, Perishable gets Hot 'n' bothered"
''The Phoenix'', April 24 - May 1, 1997


Critical reception

In Jason Zinoman's ''
New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'' review, the play is called "curious, clever and often frustrating jumble of a play", but that "this play seem as relevant as ever." However, his ultimate conclusion is that "the broad comedy is not quite funny enough and the tragic twists lack credibility."Zinoman, Jason
"Pornography, to Prop Up Family Values"
''New York Times'', March 29, 2005


References

{{reflist


External links


Lortel listing
Plays by Paula Vogel 1994 plays One-act plays Off-Broadway plays American tragedy plays Sexuality in plays