Metro Pulse/Backstage/Just a Coupla White Chicks Sitting Around Talkin'

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What:
Just a Coupla White Chicks Sittin' Around Talkin'

When:
Thurs.-Sat. at 8 p.m.; Through Dec. 15.

Where:
Theatre Central, 19 Market Square

Cost:
$5/$10. Call 936-2291

Theatre Central digs into women's relationships with men and each other

by Paige M. Travis

Don't let the title fool you. Something serious—and seriously funny—is going on beneath the surface of Just a Coupla White Chicks Sitting Around Talkin'. In some ways, the title is too dismissive, too flippant about the serious events in the lives of these "chicks." Maybe playwright John Ford Noonan chose the name in order to throw us off the path, distract us into focusing on the play as a comedy instead of a comment on women and their relationships with each other and the men in their lives. But the script's humor and pathos shine through thanks to the talents of two local actresses.

The two white chicks in question are neighbors in the fancy suburbs of Westchester County, New York: Maude Mix (Laurel M. Williams), a housewife with a busy social calendar, and the newly transplanted Texan, Hannah Mae Bindler (Margy Ragsdale), who whirls into Maude's life like a twister and, it could be argued, creates just as much havoc.

Williams is perfectly cast as the prim-and-proper Maude who cleans her perfect Southern Living kitchen while wearing a nice dress and high heels. And Ragsdale lets loose with a Southern accent and acts zany to her heart's content, dashing from one side of the stage to the other with an energy that is either caffeine-fueled (these women drink tons of coffee) or merely genetic.

The first scenes build on the established stereotypes of the busybody neighbor trying to befriend the stodgy socialite. But Hannah Mae's charm and persistence (and apparent trust that Maude won't call the police when she keeps coming into her kitchen without an invite) wears Maude down after a few days of her popping in for coffee. Soon, they have a regular appointment during which many truths are revealed.

Hannah Mae tells stories of life back in Texas, and Maude opens up about her husband who may be in the process of leaving her for his secretary. When he calls to announce his intentions to break off the marriage, Maude grabs her bags to fly to his exotic locale and talk him into trying again. But Hannah Mae is a strong convincer. In the play's most hilarious scene (which the actresses seem to enjoy as much as the audience), the two women get in a fight, which leads to wrestling and then a fit of laughter that disables them both. Maude decides that she and Hannah Mae should go have a good time in New York City instead. The women return from their weekend trip rejuvenated and tighter than ever. But as Maude is realizing that her husband has cleared out his things, Hannah Mae is on the phone reporting to her husband about their trip.

The play's only real fault is that everything happens so fast; it's hard to feel just how much these women change before our eyes. The rapid-fire dialogue and quick scene changes (accompanied by a Dixie Chicks song) make the play seem rushed. Lingering on a few moments of sympathy between the two friends might give the changes more impact. The beauty of White Chicks is its simplicity, and director Mark Moffett has kept the Theatre Central production to the basics: a kitchen with a table, some counters, a coffee maker. His actresses do the rest.

Ultimately, Maude learns how to let go and live for her own happiness. But the irony is that while Maude is left free and husbandless, Hannah Mae goes back home to her perpetually unfaithful but repentant husband. Perhaps Maude achieved what Hannah Mae has never had the strength to do. Instead of leaving The Lug, she just accepts his "wandering hands" even when they wander next door to Maude. Amazingly, Hannah Mae doesn't even hold Maude responsible for sleeping with her husband. As unrealistic as I found Hannah Mae's reaction to her husband's affair, I think now it was a sign of Hannah Mae's serious denial; she swears that her husband's seduction of Maude was contrived to keep the two friends apart. Is Noonan saying that women devise crazy explanations for their husbands' behavior in order to cope?

By the end of the play, Hannah Mae could learn a few things from Maude about equality in marriage and getting a backbone. That's my take on the situation; other people (including those who have been married) might like Hannah Mae's "forgive and forget" attitude, that marriage means taking the bad with the good and looking at the big picture and not the minor flaws.

I'm still not sure White Chicks made any comments of great depth (or to my satisfaction anyway) about women and the power of their friendships, but the play is funny. Which is to say, perhaps, that the element of distraction concocted by the title—assisted by good comedic performances—worked. If there were a sequel, I'd like to see Maude as a successful single woman, maybe opening her own cookie-baking business, helping Hannah Mae kick her no-good husband out on his behind. Williams and Ragsdale certainly make you want to see more from these two characters.