What do the novel Vile Bodies, the film The Notebook, the novel The Things They Carried, and the poem The Road Not Taken all have in common? Not only are they beautiful pieces of work, but they were also all featured in devised theatre troupe Britomartis’ fall show “Vile Bodies.” I am too too glad that I saw it.
Sofia Benitez and Megan de Koning
Image Credit: Steven Williams
The show was unlike any other I’d ever been to or even heard about. All advertisements stated that it would be on the third floor of Rocky. This confused me; I wondered why they didn’t just specify the room number. Beyond that, though, I didn’t really give it much thought. Upon arriving to Rocky, a few friends and I checked in with some of the cast members on the first floor. They crossed our names off the list and handed us each green beaded necklaces. Some people received red ones, others blue. Uncertain as to what the different colors meant, then we were all ushered to the third floor.
In character, different cast members greeted us at the top of the stairs. We were instructed to put our jackets in one room and then head to a particular space based on the color of our necklaces. Not only did the necklace thing make sense, but the event location did too: it literally took place on the entire third floor of Rocky. At any given time, a third of the audience members were in the hallway, a third in one of the corner classrooms, and a third in another corner classroom. My friends and I wore green, meaning we started in one of the classrooms, moved to the hallway, then to the other classroom, and back to the hallway again with everyone for the curtain call. A different part of the story was told in each space. And the order in which the audience experienced it didn’t seem to matter. The moving from place to place and the shuffled storyline made Vile Bodies an incredibly unique show.
Speaking of shuffling, the actors were constantly moving from space to space. It’s not as if they were each designated to one of the three spaces and stayed there. They all appeared in all of the spaces at least once. Also, there seemed to be a soundtrack playing continuously in the background featuring songs and sound cues and sound effects and the like. I never saw anyone starting or stopping it, except for at the very start of the show. Thus, they must’ve worked on the timing and transitions — both their own and our when they shepherded us between spaces — quite extensively. I was, and still am, thoroughly impressed by this feat.
Simeon Bea and Irene Tait
Image Credit: Steven Williams
All of the actors consistently engaged the audience, breaking the fourth wall multiple times. Arguably, there was no fourth wall at all. At times, they talked to or referenced audience members as if we were just extra characters in their world. I enjoyed feeling like I was a part of the show in even this small way, rather than just being an audience member.
Overall, Vile Bodies was a great show. It was very “Vassar” in its delivery. There was a lot of social commentary. It was even situated in part on campus: Bacios, a drag race on Raymond Ave, and a typical Vassar Saturday night are just a few of the references made. The show was admittedly a bit confusing though, leaving me not entirely sure what to make of it. If the vague Yik Yak’s leading up to the show were any indication, I’d say that the confusion factor was at least partially what they were going for.
Hopefully you got the opportunity to see those vile bodies, including CAAD’s own Sofia Benitez, that make up Britomartis as they performed in the show. It was a worthwhile experience. If you weren’t able to make it, be sure to check out any future shows the group may have next semester!