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A one-act play exploring the myths and realities of Rape. The story follows the experiences of Tracey, a young woman who becomes a victim of date rape. As the action progresses other characters and scenes are used to highlight relevant issues, e.g. male rape, sexual violence in films.
The disturbing topic of rape is treated sensitively and thoughtfully. No real or symbolic violence is ever shown, no face is ever given to the “rapist” and the use of coarse language is kept to a bare minimum (the only words used being whore and slut, both on only one occasion)
The cast is very adaptable, with doubling of characters it is possible to minimize to 4 women and 2 men. For larger casts any number of females can be added, the lines indicated with and asterix can be distributed amongst characters, (11f and 4m being the ideal) but it is advisable not to use the actress playing Tracey in any other role
At the premiere of this production typed overheads were displayed during scene transitions. These overheads included definitions of both “rape” and “myth”, the 10 greatest myths concerning rape and statistics related to the topic (supplied by the rape crisis centre).
The production was performed on a bare stage, with rostra or blocks used to create the various locations, costumes were kept very basic, with all characters except Tracey and Suzie dressed in blacks with items added to establish particular characters. As the action progressed Tracey’s clothes became darker until by the conclusion she too was dressed in black, joining with the rest of the women with shared experiences of sexual abuse.