Autumn Kioti Horne, Amber Joy Layne, Karen Stephens, Elizabeth Price, and Gaby Tortoledo. in "POTUS" at Zoetic Stage. (Photo by Morgan Sophia Photography.)
A pink sticky note ends up on George Washington’s mouth during Zoetic Stage Company’s fiercely funny production of Selina Fillinger’s farce, “POTUS.” Portraits of past presidents such as Washington grace the upstage wall; they are mostly behind the first-rate female performers comprising the cast.
This is all fitting for a feminist play that puts women in the spotlight. Undoubtedly, “POTUS” celebrates them with seven strong female characters who are front and center. In fact, the play’s full title is “POTUS Or, Behind Every Great Dumbass Are Seven Women Trying to Keep Him Alive.” For too long, our patriarchal society has silenced women, the playwright suggests. And many farcical pieces tend to feature men in the limelight. But in “POTUS,” women are in the spotlight and the men are in the background, shushed.
Karen Stephens as The First Lady and Renata Eastlick as Chris, a newspaper journalist, in "POTUS" at Zoetic Stage. (Photo by Morgan Sophia Photography.)
Of course, one of the titular characters is the President of the United States (POTUS). But this major figure plays a minor role in Fillinger’s play. In fact, we only see his legs late during the show.
Some of South Florida’s finest female stage actresses star in Zoetic’s professional production, which lasts about two hours and 15 minutes, including intermission, and runs through Sunday, Jan. 26. The venue is the Adrienne Arsht Center’s intimate Carnival Studio Theater in downtown Miami.
Under Zoetic Stage Founding Artistic Director Stuart Meltzer’s inspired direction, the cast delivers intense, over the top, yet believable performances that befit a farce. Truly, there are no supporting characters in “POTUS.” They are all starring roles, and the cast members, who are all local, combine to form a strong ensemble. The performers, who also create believable individual characters, are Renata Eastlick, Elena Maria Garcia, Autumn Kioti Horne, Amber Joy Layne, Elizabeth Price, Karen Stephens, and Gaby Tortoledo.
Gaby Tortoledo and Elizabeth Price in "POTUS" at Zoetic Stage. (Photo by Morgan Sophia Photography.)
The characters are mostly one-dimensional. But while they may lack depth, the playwright makes up for it with funny material that will likely leave you laughing out loud for long periods. Indeed, during the reviewed performance, the audience could not stop laughing heartily and lengthily. Largely, “POTUS” offers an escapist afternoon or evening at the theater. You just wonder whether an intermission is necessary. It interrupts the flow of action. Indeed, the incident that occurs before intermission leaves us itching for the production to continue.
Clearly, the play takes place in Washington D.C., but Fillinger never specifies a time. However, Fillinger suggests that her play takes place during the present. While you may have an idea about which president the titular POTUS represents, the playwright has not indicated any specific president, living or deceased.
This is a farce, a style of comedy that features an improbable, complex plot and often involves physical as well as verbal humor. Expect slapstick humor that is funny for obvious reasons. In addition, the play includes strong profanity. Parents and guardians, think twice before bringing your children. Undoubtedly, this play would receive at least an “R” rating if it were a film.
The action begins after the unnamed president uses a derogatory term to refer to his wife. Once news of the utterance becomes public, the seven women tasked with maintaining a sense of sanity in the White House must conduct damage control. But the derogatory term that the president uses is hardly the only problem that arises. In addition, the president’s sister, Bernadette (Horne), is a convict. She shows up at the White House wearing a leg monitor, hoping that her brother will follow through on his promise to pardon her. Bernadette bears such a strong resemblance to her brother that at one point, the women on the president’s staff conspire to have her impersonate her brother.
Then there is Dusty, the married president’s young girlfriend (Layne). She shows up at the White House with personal news that could turn the First Marriage and the White House upside down.
Autumn Kioti Horne, Amber Joy Layne, Renata Eastlick, Elizabeth Price, Elena Maria Garcia, and Karen Stephens in "POTUS" at Zoetic Stage. (Photo by Morgan Sophia Photography.)
Meanwhile, the president’s personal secretary, Stephanie (Garcia) accidentally ingests hallucinogens that she thought were Tums. As a result, she spends part of the play running up and down the stage wearing a silly expression and looking like a hyper, silly child who ate too much candy. By the way, the president’s sister supplied the drugs that Stephanie thought were Tums.
Karen Stephens and Autumn Kioti Horne in "POTUS" at Zoetic Stage. (Photo by Morgan Sophia Photography.)
Then there is White House reporter Chris (Eastlick). She is newly divorced and fears that a younger man will replace her at work. Therefore, she looks for scandal in the White House, and finds there is no shortage of it. As a matter of fact, Chris winds up at the center of one of the scandals. It involves the accidental use of a bust of suffragette Alice Paul as a weapon. Also, Chris has recently given birth, so she spends the entire play leaking milk and wearing a breast pump.
Amid the chaos, some sanity reigns. For example, the first lady, Margaret (Stephens) tries to remain calm and hide her disdain for her cheating husband. The playwright also introduces us to Harriet (Price), the president’s hard-working chief of staff who does not seem to be in the mood for humor.
“POTUS” works mostly as a farce rather than a political satire with a clear message. However, there are times when the play turns serious (for a farce, that is). For instance, we learn that the first lady loves to hunt and carries a gun (women are not exclusively gatherers, Fillinger is apparently trying to tell us).
Another serious moment comes when Dusty asserts that reproductive health care should be a universal right. Following that assertion, the audience applauded during the reviewed performance. Largely, however, POTUS is not a political play that takes sides.
While the playwright sprinkles “POTUS” with serious moments, comedy mostly reigns throughout the afternoon or evening. And Meltzer directs with a comedic touch that even makes the fourth wall disappear. And when disorder erupts, carefully choreographed chaos keeps everybody in stitches.
Amber Joy Layne and Elena Maria Garcia in "POTUS" at Zoetic Stage. (Photo by Morgan Sophia Photography.)
These talented performers are naturally funny. They play their roles with sincerity, allowing comic moments to arise naturally from their portrayals. Also, the cast members have obviously perfected their comic timing.
Garcia is one of South Florida’s funniest performers. She has proven that time and again with, for example, her hilarious one-performer shows “Fuacata! Or A Latina’s Guide to Surviving the Universe” and “Cuban Chicken Soup: When There’s No More Café.” Garcia collaborated with Meltzer on those one-performer shows.
In “POTUS,” Garcia never fails to entertain as Stephanie. The performer’s dark hair bounces, her dark eyes widen, and a smile graces her face as her character scampers across the stage, under the influence of hallucinogens and appearing carefree. While Gracia plays Stephanie over the top, as befitting a farce, the portrayal never seems forced.
Tortoledo as Jean, the press secretary, commands the stage. And she injects the character with a quick wit, cynicism, and a self-assurance that makes us believe this woman can handle any pressroom or scandal.
The cast of POTUS (Photo - Morgan Sophia Photography.)
Price, an award-winning performer who is also a director, writer, and producer, imbues Harriet with conviction and a tension that suggests this woman is a workaholic who cares deeply about her job. We sense that devotion from the play’s opening lines, when the look of intense and genuine concern on Price’s face suggests something horrible has happened.
As the crooked sibling, Bernadette, Horne stumbles onto the stage, appearing convincingly unstable and perhaps drunk as well as high. Horne, an interdisciplinary artist, poet, performer, and environmental educator, plays this character as an unrefined, short-tempered individual looking for a quick fix to her problems.
Autumn Kioti Horne, Gaby Tortoledo (Photo - Morgan Sophia Photography.)
Contrastingly, Stephens imbues first lady Margaret with the kind of grace that may call to mind former first lady Michelle Obama. Stephens, an award-winning performer who brings an impressive naturalness to her roles, deftly plays Margaret as a sophisticated and proud woman who does everything with enthusiasm. When Stephens’ Margaret describes her love for hunting, she mimes holding a gun and speaks with the confidence and competitive enthusiasm of a seasoned sportsman.
Eastlick, an award-winning actor and voiceover artist, brings a credible worldliness, dry wit, and competitiveness to the role of Chris, a reporter who does not let many things get past her.
Layne, who is making her debut in Miami’s theater scene, also fares well in a more stereotypical role. Indeed, you could characterize Dusty as a “dumb blonde” and Layne’s performance may remind you of Reese Witherspoon as Elle Woods in “Legally Blonde.” Layne’s Dusty may be impulsive, but just when you are about to dismiss her as scatterbrained, the performer imbues her character with enough sincerity to make her respectable.
Just as the cast members excel, the behind-the-scenes artists shine as well. They include scenic designer Michael McKeever, Zoetic Stage’s producing director and founder. This versatile live theater artist has created a realistic, spacious office with enough telling detail to place us in the White House. The setting never changes. Instead, stagehands rearrange as well as add and subtract furniture to suggest different offices in the White House. The transitions happen quickly enough to ensure seamless scene changes.
Elena Maria Garcia and Elizabeth Price in in "POTUS" at Zoetic Stage. (Photo by Morgan Sophia Photography.)
The lighting design, by Becky Montero, is appropriately realistic and mostly unnoticeable. But that means that the lighting design blends in seamlessly with the other elements to create a unified whole.
Dawn Shamburger’s costume design seems appropriate for the characters. For instance, several wear darker clothing that seems proper in work settings. By contrast, Dusty wears a pinkish outfit that befits her bubbly feminine personality.
Meltzer and associate director Bailey Hacker handled the sound design. It ensures that we can hear and understand the performers. Also, modern, intense music in between scenes carries a hip flavor that seems appropriate for this play.
While experiencing the award-winning Zoetic Stage’s production, you may find yourself at times looking at those portraits of past presidents on the upstage wall. What would these esteemed individuals think about the action onstage and about the state of politics today, you may ask yourself.
IF YOU GO
WHAT: Zoetic Stage Company’s production of “POTUS Or, Behind Every Great Dumbass Are Seven Women Trying to Keep Him Alive.”
WHEN: Through Sunday, Jan. 26.
WHERE: The Adrienne Arsht Center’s Carnival Studio Theater, 1300 Biscayne Blvd. in Miami
TICKETS: $61-$66
INFORMATION: www.arshtcenter.org/tickets.
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