The Dartmouth Players elicited much laughter and many poignant moments during yesterday afternoon's reading of "The Beautiful People Die Twice," a new play-in-progress by Chance Whitmire '94, in the Warren Bentley Theater, Hopkins Center.
"The Beautiful People Die Twice" is the vibrant, trenchant and often hilarious story of fragrance saleswomen at the fictional department store Chandler's, particularly, the vituperous heroine Talon Kerideth, read by Heather Nolan '94.
Talon is unconventional, anti-social and seemingly unbeautiful compared to her gorgeous co-worker, Saint Winter, read by Aliza Waksal '96. This contrast illustrates the play's theme, which constructs a dominant culture of "beautiful people," against which Talon reacts.
The plot begins with Chandler's promotion of a new fragrance aptly titled, "Beautiful." Talon refuses to sell "Beautiful" to eager customers as a matter of principle, because she will not act the accomplice to the crimes of a beauty culture that takes advantage of women's self-esteem. She refers to the fragrance as "bug spray" and "mace" and even manages to spray it in customers' eyes.
When the wealthy Keller Young, read by David Harbour '97, enters the scene to pick up more than just Christmas gifts, a flirtation ensues that leads to grave revelations.
Whitmire has crafted a group of wonderfully real characters, including Darcy (Tammi Gardner '94), the theatrical fragrance counter manager, and Mike (Dave Gersh '96), another salesperson and Talon's compatriot in the battle against the cult of beauty. But, in Talon, Whitmire has created a highly complex personality, one that triumphs in her one-line ripostes as she attempts to destroy the very myth she plays into.
Another of Whitmire's talents in ample evidence in "The Beautiful People Die Twice" is his skill with dialogue, particularly the acerbic one-liners the characters fling at each other. "Friends are just enemies who don't have the guts to kill you," Talon asserts at one point. Her cynicism and the small moments of hope that manage to break through it, form a tragic web with the play's denouement.
As this work is a play-in-progress, Whitmire held an informal discussion with the audience afterward to hear its critical opinion. Some suggestions involved bringing certain characters to the fore or adjusting some scenes and dialogue to make their motivations clearer.
As it stands, "The Beautiful People Die Twice" needs only minor adjustments to render it a lively, adept treatment of themes that many Dartmouth students would likely find relevant to their own lives. Hopefully, after its revision, a fully staged "The Beautiful People Die Twice" will grace the Warren Bentley Theater.
