By Holli Harms
There is nothing like the feeling of discovery. Nothing like laughing so hard you cry. We don’t often get those opportunities in life, and when they come, we want to tell everyone so they can have some joy in their life as well. Share the joy. Okay, this is my chance, “Everyone. This is the real deal. See it!”
And along with a full Broadway house filled with laughter, there is nothing like the feeling of being part of a revolution, a movement, a farcical and completely crazy journey. You’ll get all of these things and more with Selina Fillinger’s Broadway debut, POTUS: Or Behind Every Dumbass Are Seven Women Trying To Keep Him Alive. Fillinger is the fresh relevant voice Broadway has been waiting for, and for that matter, all of us have, even if we didn’t know it.
The evening is farce with a capital F. A capital F for FEMALE. This is what it’s like to have women’s issues and truths live on stage.
Vanessa Williams, Julie White Photo by ©Paul Kolnik
Fillinger does not alienate the male audience in the party of humanity she is throwing. Everyone gets to join in with the side-splitting laughter, dancing, cheerleading, singing. It’s a wildly insane mish-mash of frivolity that exudes clarity in its craziness and holds strong to its own sense of integrity.
This play is what it’s like to write about women, for women, with the marvelous Susan Stroman at the helm, navigating the slapstick humor, the quiet contemplative moments, and the insanity.
It is a busy day for Potus and it is already off to a terrible start beginning with him making a huge verbal mistake that will catapult the rest of the day into chaos. His staff, all women, are working to save face, but surprise guests keep appearing to throw this hot mess of a day into an outright disaster of great proportions. It’s a blizzard of women trying to make the world right, facing blatant transgressions and accidents, that catapult into further transgressions and accidents, that catapult into further transgressions and accidents.
The set and costumes are part of the joy you’ll get to experience. They enhance this hybrid of television, film, and theater, with dialogue as fast-paced as Gilmore Girls, a revolving set that allows for a cinematic montage sequence, and a slapstick farce James Corden would be proud of.
Rachel Dratch, Julie White Photo by ©Paul Kolnik
The stellar cast is one of the best ensembles I have seen this Broadway season. Each of these magnificent performers puts their claw marks on the stage, gnashing their way to the aesthetically perfect rockin’ end. Their talent is on point, and they are awesome.
POTUS is playing at the Shubert, the same theater that housed A Chorus Line which as we all know catapulted into the theatrical stratosphere. We have a new star in that stratosphere, POTUS.
Don’t let anyone tell you anything about it. Please, go and discover each moment for yourself. Let this be your surprise gift to yourself. POTUS is just too good to miss.
POTUS: Or Behind Every Dumbass Are Seven Women Trying To Keep Him Alive written by debut playwright Selina Fillinger, directed by Susan Stroman.
Cast: Vanessa Williams, Rachel Dratch, Julianne Hough, Julie White, Lilli Cooper, Lea Delaria, Suzy Nakamura
Creative Team: Stage Manager Jen Ash, Scenic Design Beowulf Boritt, Costume Design Linda Cho, Lighting Design Sonoyo Nishakawa, Sound Design Jessica Paz, Hair and Wig Design Cookie Jordan, Fight and Intimacy Director Rocio Mendez, Makeup Design Kirk Cambridge-Del Pesche, Arranger & Music Director Sonny Paladino, Casting Director Taylor Williams, Production Stage Manager Johnny Milani, Associate Director Leah Hofmann
Tickets for POTUS playing at the Shubert Theatre Broadway, 225 West 44th Street Between Broadway and 8th Avenue New York NY 10036
Running Time: 1 hour and 50 minutes including one intermission
** Proof of Vaccination and ID required. Masks must be worn throughout the duration of the performance.
