An actress stands alone onstage, waiting in the dark. As the footlights come up, we see that she does not have a single article of clothing on. The woman, Jodie (played by Aviva Jane Carlin), begins to tell jokes, most of which are mildly funny. The audience laughs, a little too loudly.
Thus is the auspicious beginning of "Jodie's Body," an 80-minute, one-woman show starring, written and produced by Carlin. Jodie is an artists' model posing before three imagined students. Though set in London, the action takes place three days following the first free elections in South Africa.
But regardless of audience members' immediate reactions to Carlin's full-frontal nudity (while some will be turned off by the display, others will no doubt be turned on), soon into the show it becomes a non-issue, as Jodie begins to reveal the contents of her head as well.
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"Body" played at the Helms this past weekend, presented in tandem by the Drama Department and the Women's Center. This performance was part of the Center's "Shapers of the World" series, marking the Center's 10th anniversary as well as the 20th anniversary of the University's Studies in Women and Gender program.
On one level, the play is concerned with the theme of self-awareness. We cannot help but think of ourselves and our own bodies as we look at Jodie's. We project our own insecurities on this nude woman. And then we also become conscious of our reactions, and those of the people around us.
Thursday's opening performance was a private one, held for representatives of the University's 16 sororities, with the hope of addressing the issue of body image. Jodie's body is considered, in our culture of buns of steel and six-pack abs, to be overweight. And yet Carlin wears it more comfortably than many wear costumes.
On another level, however, "Body" addresses major political concerns regarding the practice and ultimate fall of apartheid. She recalls events from her childhood in South Africa (in real life, Carlin grew up in Uganda). At this point, the play becomes slightly less engaging, but that's because in a one-woman show, audience reaction is crucial, and it is harder to feel such response during a play's more dramatic, sobering moments.
As she weaves this often funny, occasionally painful tapestry together, Carlin shows that there is a human attached to every body, with real feelings. And while she relates the discrimination of apartheid to the alienation we often feel because of our appearance, she never equates the two.
What Carlin does do with "Body," however, is give audiences plenty of food for thought - something quite rewarding to chew on.
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