She enters left, strutting her tight red dress, dirty Barbie stuff. To 80’s music, she performs a naughty strip tease with the doll, throwing tiny Barbie heels at the audience. She is Denise Stewart in a Smurfette tee and in just over an hour, she will have you laughing about her North Carolina, youngest-of-four childhood and tearing up over her loving Mother’s inability to quit drinking. She grew up under the tender eyes of Southern neighborhood women, who folded her into their families without taming her spirit. Thankfully.
Her play, Dirty Barbie and other Girlhood Tales is an ode to growing up female and made me think of my own parenting. A feminist has a baby girl who wants to become a cheerleader and is allergic to dust mites, ie no stuffed toys. Barbie became my daughter’s companion out of necessity – she was plastic, and you could wash her clothes.
But I was always secretly worried about the underlying message; the sexual undertow of pretty is all you’ll ever need to be in this world honey.
Barbie appeared in 1959 so I was immune to her wily ways. Plus I was a tomboy, when being a tomboy was something to be proud of…I even punched a mean boy in the face with my ice cream cone once. Notice the red Wayfarers and sexy white popcorn socks on this young Mom in her kid totem!
When Barbie started building her career over the years, becoming everything from an astronaut, to a firefighter, and even a rock star I felt slightly better about her influence. And yes Denise you’re right. Mattel will probably never make a Bipolar, Bulimic or Binge Drinking Barbie. Still, I’m so glad she broke up with Ken.
For possible tix to a sold out show: http://www.livearts.org/
For ideas on gifts other than Barbie: http://www.girlsforachange.org/
MountainMornings 