http://chicagotheaterbeat.com/2014/08/04/intimate-apparel-eclipse-theatre-review/
Intimate Apparel ...playwright Lynn Nottage
God
kissed esther's hands
the first time she ran cloth
through her singer
treadle sewing machine
corsets
were going to be
her ticket to independence
living in a compact boarding house
jubilant at making some money
she squirreled away her savings
sewn lovingly into her quilt
year in year out
only to have it stolen by a cad
who neglected and lied to her
seized with loneliness
she ached for touch
sensed
her boss mr marks felt the same
how wrong can a seamstress be
...he recoiled from her
..colour is not contagious you know mr marks
i'm a jew he said sadly... it's rabbinical law
(sigh!)
the walls
the rules
mankind creates
to block love
in our magnificently
constructed but fragile
house of cards
Such an intriguing story, Rallentanda. I'm glad it is a play as the plot is really good!
ReplyDeleteWow! You open an entirely unique area of date/day--actually LAW--that should live in infamy. My Jewish father was "buried" when he married my athiest/protestant mother--and he wonders how I became radical! Intimate apparel is a great symbol of the layer of tradition/law that accompanies our nakedness. It is fragile material, but so well-made that sometimes we forget it is breakable.
ReplyDeletethe touch is unwanted & unsolicited, the religious excuse was just convenient ~ the walls can be quite high in the house of cards ~
ReplyDeleteI like the setting that you give this woman with so many opportunities. The quilt representative of an entire life.
ReplyDeleteNicely sewn
There is a lot to think about here. Those rules man makes that block love and happiness are indeed tragic.
ReplyDeleteIntimate piece...sigh.... x
ReplyDeleteLove your poem. My ancestors didn't let rules of stature or religion come between them I'm so glad they didn't. It is sad that silly outdated structures keep people who love one another whether stature, creed ,colour ,or religion apart.
ReplyDeleteThe search for purity is ridiculous when you realize the heart will fit in any body...the mind is the problem.
ReplyDeleteRules, if only some were brave enough to break those that are stupid.....
ReplyDeleteWow... love this story it reads like a ballad, so sad that man-made laws can so corset our lives ... a great post ... thought inspiring.
ReplyDeleteExquisite.. I agree, ridiculous laws can be suffocating!! ...the ‘breakthrough’ is stupendous and inspiring...!!
ReplyDeleteSo much to contemplate. Some rules are made to be broken.
ReplyDeleteI like the story in this. Very true and unfortunate for the time period.
ReplyDeleteA wonderful poem with a story in it :)
ReplyDeleteintriguing and creative..!
ReplyDeleteNicely said. Truly said.
ReplyDeletebeautifully written, love should not be blocked
ReplyDeleteTrustworthy
Story well presented with a fact
ReplyDeleteHad not heard of this play before. It was/is in fact - rabbinical law. Well presented.
ReplyDeleteReligion is responsible for many crimes against humanity...
ReplyDelete