The Double Standard

It's not easy being a girl.

Last weekend, I had the very great honor of sharing the stage with sixteen other actresses. Being a part of The Vagina Monologues was amazing and important not only because of the subject matter, but because it is one of the few regularly produced plays in that can cast more than four women at once.

Last weekend the massive all female cast crammed into Renton Civic's two tiny dressing rooms, shared stories, told dirty jokes, curled our hair, commented on the audiance's reaction, and fought for chairs. We had a great time, we put on three great shows, there was a lot of love, and laughter, and a few differnet generations. Women, it turns out have a lot to learn from acting together, it's a pity we don't do it more often.

The last time I performed at Renton Civic I shared that same dressing room with just three other women. Of the four of us only two had parts with names. Across the hall there were five men jostling for mirror space, only one was a chorus member.

The play before that I shared a dressing room with just one other woman. We luxuriated in the space, while four men crowded into the other dressing room.

It's a common phenomena. I see cast break downs all the time when heading into auditions: 4M 2W, 6M 2W, 5M 4W, 10M 1W. There is rarely a play with more than one part for a woman my age, rarely a play where they don't need more men than women. I have been in one. A few summers ago I was in a play with twelve other women and only one man. It was a great experience, but then again, I co-wrote and produced it. I have tried my best to help right the imbalance that exists in the theater today, and I am not alone in my fight. There are companies dedicated to producing plays by women, for women, and featuring predominantly female casts. There are productions like The Vagina Monologues. Productions that celebrate womanhood.

I would just like to see more productions that celebrate great actresses. Because the worst of it is, while the balance of male to female roles is out of joint in one direction, the balance of male to female talent is out of joint in exactly the opposite. I have nothing against the actors in this town, most of them are very good. But it is a whole lot easier for the good ones to get cast; if you're talented and male, you'll get good parts, if you can walk and talk at the same time while hinting at a basic emotion, and are male, you'll get the left over parts. While on the other side of the spectrum, talented actresses compete with other talented actresses for the few available roles.

I won't say it's not fair, so little in life is that it really doesn't bare repeating. But it is problem. A problem that I am not alone in recognizing, or working to remedy. So in the meantime, I'll just have to treasure the moments I do have, take the parts I'm lucky enough to land, and keep writing those plays with giant female casts in the hope that someone will produce one someday.

Its not easy being a girl, but that doesn't make it any less wonderful.