Let a Hundred Flowers Bloom

Boom and blossom.

By LAUREN TERRY

From the beginning, Let a Hundred Flowers Bloom is a romance, a politically driven tale and a riveting comedy. Take the play’s prologue: The narrator, a vivacious author of gay Marxist porn named Puppy, tells a politico-erotic story titled Mein Cock. The action is set in the mid-’90s, as AIDS drugs are improving, and playwright David Zellnik introduces us to a group of gay men and examines how they deal with uncertainty and instability. We see Jake (Andrew Bray) and Samson (Steve Vanderzee), a couple who had prepared to die together, as they struggle to “plan more than six weeks ahead.” Jake is the most romantic character, and Bray, curled up with a blanket over his head, beautifully portrays an idealist who’s grown depressed and pseudo-delusional. As narrator Puppy, Matthew Kern can be exhaustingly flamboyant, lacking subtlety during the more sincere moments. But the script’s philosophical musings, Paul Angelo’s exuberant direction and the sheer energy of the rest of Defunkt Theatre cast keep things engaging. The play’s title references Mao Zedong’s Hundred Flowers Campaign, in which the Communist chairman cracked down on political dissidents. Yet the production’s tone is far from brooding, with plenty of cheesy porno music and a campy sex scene—or two, if you count a handy in the back of a Payless shoe store—thrown in for good measure. 

SEE IT: Let a Hundred Flowers Bloom is at the Back Door Theater, 4319 SE Hawthorne Blvd., 481-2960. 7:30 pm Thursdays-Sundays through March 22 (no show March 2). "Pay what you can" Thursdays and Sundays, $15-$25 sliding scale Fridays and Saturdays.

WWeek 2015

Willamette Week’s reporting has concrete impacts that change laws, force action from civic leaders, and drive compromised politicians from public office. Support WW's journalism today.