The Maids

Reviewed by Paula Citron
September 29, 2011

The Maids
Buddies in Bad Times Theatre
Written by Jean Genet (translated by Martin Crimp)
Directed by Brendan Healy
Featuring Diane D’Aquila, Ron Kennell and Maria Ricossa
Buddies in Bad Times Theatre
Sept. 17 to Oct. 9, 2011

Under artistic director Brendan Healy, Buddies in Bad Times Theatre has become a major player. There is still a gay bias, but Healy’s programming has been elevated in terms of literary and cultural merit.

Take for example, Healy’s production of Jean Genet’s 1947 classic The Maids. Genet is categorized as Theatre of Cruelty, but his savage and brutal works are contained within a poetic text. His subject matter is always the outsider.

The Maids is based on a sensational 1933 murder case in Le Mans, France where the Papin sisters murdered and mutilated their employer’s wife and daughter. Genet saw these killings as examples of class warfare. In the play, one becomes the mistress and the other the maid, a ceremony they act out when Madame is not home.

Diane D’Aquila, Ron Kennell and Maria Ricossa give marvellous performances, and the production values are stunning.

Serious theatre goers should see this play.

The Maids continues at Buddies in Bad Times Theatre until Oct. 9.