Pulp. Image by Michael Brosilow_________
Playwright: Patricia Kane
At: About Face Theatre, Victory Gardens Greenhouse, 2257 N. Lincoln
Phone: 773-871-3000; $20-$40
Runs through: May 27
By Jonathan Abarbanel
'I'm a Lesbian, pure and simple. No bones about it,' ex-military butch Terry Logan declares repeatedly, and the laughter increases with each repetition in this welcome return of About Face Theatre's 2004 hit. No bones about it and no boners, either, in Patricia Kane's all-girl affectionate parody of 1950's Lesbian fiction, directed again by Jessica Thebus with the perfect balance of noir-ish style and tongue-in- ( pardon ) -cheek delivery. About Face has reassembled the original cast as well, with the single substitution of author Kane herself in the role originated by Jane Blass.
It's the steamy Chicago summer of 1956 when tiny but tough Terry Logan ( Julia Neary ) blows into town, and quickly finds a place for herself within the extended family of the Well, a club for women who love women. The air conditioning blows full blast, but 'heat, hormones and whisky' soon inflame things as Terry connects with Eva 'Bing' Malone ( Lesley Bevan ) , the Well's reigning long-limbed femme, and then with the club's mysterious ice-princess owner, Vivian Blaine ( no, not the 1950s Broadway star of Guys and Dolls ) . The scene is completed by bubbly but lonely club manager Pepper Rousch ( Hanna Dworkin ) , who can quote every Barbara Stanwyck film, and mannish sharpshooter Esther Nitz ( Patricia Kane ) , whose drag king persona is Winchester ( as in rifle ) Cox.
Everyone in the cast is pitch-perfect, each a distinct physical type with a distinct personality and flare for comedy. And Kane knows how to turn a line or a wisecrack. 'Sometimes you have to taste fresh fruit to savor fine wine,' the on-the-make Terry deadpans to Vivian ( Amy Warren ) to explain her fling with Bing. Vivian herself, following a humorous remark, explains, 'A small joke ... even Lesbians need levity on occasion.'
Clever, action-packed and decidedly racy without being raunchy, Pulp tears by in just 90 minutes, and that includes a half-dozen original songs by Andre Pluess and Amy Warren ( music ) and Kane ( lyrics ) . In 2004 several original songs were mixed with actual period songs, but this time all the tunes are original although you'd never know it, so perfectly do they capture the jazz-influenced cool ballads and early rock riffs of mid-1950s pop music.
Meghan Raham's scenic design captures the times, too, in the 1950s-moderne look of a well-kept tavern: polished bar, corner jukebox, floor of black-and-white linoleum squares and deco revival wall sconces. A wonderful detail—a single tiny window to the outside world, high up on a wall—reminds us of the not-so-distant era when gay bars and clubs hid themselves from sight as much as possible.
Scheduled to run just four weeks, Pulp might extend if business is brisk. It's still a delight. Go see it, and spread the word.