A couple weekends ago hubs and I went to see Venus in Fur, which was a nominee for best play at the 2013 Tony Awards. It was our first non-musical play and we were a little aprehensive that we might not enjoy it as much as a musical. Luckily the Tony's have yet to steer us wrong.
Venus in Fur is a play made up soley of 2 actors. The premise of the play is a playwright/director who is trying to cast the lead female in his play based on the famous book Venus in Furs by Leopold von Sacher-Masoch. If his last name sounds a little familiar it's because the term sadomasochism was derived from this guys name. If that doesn't give you a hint about what this play is like take a look above at the play's banner and hopefully you'll get it. As if the sensuality of the play weren't riveting enough there are plot twists throughout the play that keep the audience on the edge of their seats.
This was the first time we had seen anything in the American Conservatory Theater and I was pleasantly surprised by how much I liked this theater. We've only been in the theaters that feature musicals (Golden Gate Theatere, Curran Theatere, and Orpheum Theatere), but the ACT is much smaller then those. It was definitely a much more intimate feel which I enjoyed. And even though the theater itself is much smaller they have a large open lower level with a bar and lots of seating which was a nice change from the cramped standing room only bar areas of the other theaters we've been to.
Overall I'd definitely recommend this play to first timers or newbies. I think it was a great way of dipping our toes into plays without drowning in something that would surely be over our heads like Macbeth. However, I must warn (as if it isn't obvious enough) this play is not for the prudish at heart. The play is oozing with sensuality and even a bit of gender play. But if you go into it with an open mind I'm sure you'll find it just as enjoyable as we did.
