Dear Stewart,

"Is not submission the very definition of bliss?"

These words are among my favorites spoken by Talthybius, to Queen Hecuba in the play "The Trojan Women" (adaptation by Charles Duncombe; closes this Sunday, February 21st), and to be fair, the thing to which he wants her to submit is her own enslavement, an idea which, I guess it goes without saying, I can't get behind.

I think too that in this context, "submission" is also referring, maybe (hey, all my data and research pretty much comes solely from Wikipedia; I'm no scholar and never said I was), to the will of God, and, in Talthybius' world-view, the will of God is probably something like, "Hey, Hecuba: a life of pain and suffering is what you deserve. Be glad I didn't kill you as I killed your husband and ALL YOUR SONS." God also seems intent on torturing women: we get the sharp end of the stick from God in this story, and of course there's a lesson to be learned in there, somewhere (Daughters of Phyrgia! For you, life sucks!), but that's not my point.

So anyway, what is my point?

The point is is that Hecuba, as portrayed by June Carryl, doesn't mess around. Hecuba may be defeated but she's not out just yet, and she, and the rest of this production is strong and pointy, and beautiful, and sometimes mean, and sometimes insane (there's another awesome line about time, history, and insanity that I'm just going to leave for you to discover on your own), and definitely worth checking out. What are you waiting for? Submit, and maybe you'll find some bliss yourself.

By missing it, you're missing out on something pretty cool, Mr. Copeland. Stewart! I said I was going to stop bugging you about this but who am I to keep promises?

Love you,
Irene