{"id":89186,"date":"2026-06-18T14:55:58","date_gmt":"2026-06-18T21:55:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/?p=89186"},"modified":"2026-06-18T15:01:27","modified_gmt":"2026-06-18T22:01:27","slug":"theater-review-girls-just-want-to-have-a-story-in-the-revolutionists-at-international-city-theatre","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/eat-see-do-2\/see\/theater-review-girls-just-want-to-have-a-story-in-the-revolutionists-at-international-city-theatre","title":{"rendered":"Theater Review: Girls just want to have a story in \u2018The Revolutionists\u2019 at International City Theatre"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Welcome to Theater News, a regular column by longtime reviewer Anita W. Harris. Look for it most Thursdays. Or\u00a0sign up<\/a>\u00a0for our Eat. See. Do. newsletter to get it in your inbox.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

When playwright Lauren Gunderson visited a Paris mausoleum, she did a double-take reading about a female playwright who was beheaded during the 1793 Reign of Terror \u2014 the period of the French Revolution when political paranoia over perceived threats to the new Republic led to thousands being executed by guillotine, sometimes for the flimsiest of reasons.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So Gunderson wrote a comedy about it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt was a gradual exploration of that time and the striking similarities to our time in America: ridiculous war, drowning national debt, vast divide between rich and poor, institutional racism and the quest for women\u2019s equality,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But the play turned into a story about stories, she said \u2014 about why we need to make art, what art does in times of crisis and how stories connect eras and philosophies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n Link<\/a>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis play is exactly what we need right now,\u201d says caryn desai, International City Theatre\u2019s artistic director. \u201cIt\u2019s a bold, irreverent \u2014 and very funny \u2014 exploration of the power of women to shape history.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dynamically directed by Jamie Torcellini, four talented actresses bring to life four intrepid women of the French Revolution \u2014 a queen, an assassin, an anti-slavery activist and a playwright on whom so much depends. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Their modern dialogue is funny and fast-paced as the very different women learn about each other and consider their own legacies while awaiting a potential call for execution. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
From left: Amie Farrell and Sarah Pierce in “The Revolutionists” at International City Theatre. Photo by Jordan Gohara.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

What will be their last words before losing their heads under \u201cMadame Guillotine,\u201d they ask the playwright. She struggles to write them, more concerned about writing a brilliant play about the women\u2019s experience (much like Gunderson\u2019s play).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Despite their dire situation, the women are droll, defiant and dedicated to their beliefs. Young Charlotte Corday (Sarah Pierce) carries through on her mission of stabbing revolutionary leader Jean-Paul Marat to death because of his extremism. Her single-minded fierceness is hysterical even as her commitment is palpable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Marianne Angelle (Nondumiso Tembe) \u2014 the only character Gunderson invented to represent Black women who protested slavery in the Caribbean \u2014 is just as fierce in her abolitionist beliefs, but also tragically tied to her husband fighting back home in Haiti. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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From left: Amie Farrell and Nondumiso Tembe in “The Revolutionists” at International City Theatre. Photo by Jordan Gohara.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Playwright Olympe De Gouges (Amie Farrell) is more feisty than fierce but committed to documenting the lives of these women through her nascent play, while of course hoping to gain lasting fame.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Last, but definitely not least, a delightful Marie Antoinette (Lyndsi LaRose) steals the show in her fluffy dress and cotton-candy wig (thanks to Kimberly DeShazo\u2019s creative costuming). Though comedically light and always twirling a ribbon, Marie is committed to her belief in herself and her children. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

All the actresses excel in their passionate and physically demanding roles, and we come to know and appreciate these historically based women through them. It\u2019s sad when more than one must climb the scaffold to be beheaded. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
From left: Nondumiso Tembe, Sarah Pierce and Amie Farrell in “The Revolutionists” at International City Theatre. Photo by Jordan Gohara.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

It also makes one wonder what one would be willing to sacrifice for freedom, justice and love when all are under threat and one\u2019s very life may be at stake. As Marie Antoinette says in the play, \u201cSometimes revolution needs a woman\u2019s touch.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

International City Theatre\u2019s \u201cThe Revolutionists\u201d continues through June 28 at the Beverly O\u2019Neill Theater, 330 E. Seaside Way, with shows Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m. For tickets and information, call the box office at 562-436-4610 or visit ICTLongBeach.org<\/a>. Run time is 2 hours, including intermission.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u201cThis play is exactly what we need right now,\u201d says caryn desai, International City Theatre\u2019s artistic director. \u201cIt\u2019s a bold, irreverent \u2014 and very funny \u2014 exploration of the power of women to shape history.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":207,"featured_media":89184,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"newspack_sponsor_sponsorship_scope":"","newspack_sponsor_native_byline_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_native_category_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_style":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_placement":"inherit","inline_featured_image":false,"newspack_ads_suppress_ads":false,"newspack_popups_has_disabled_popups":"","_EventAllDay":false,"_EventTimezone":"","_EventStartDate":"","_EventEndDate":"","_EventStartDateUTC":"","_EventEndDateUTC":"","_EventShowMap":false,"_EventShowMapLink":false,"_EventURL":"","_EventCost":"","_EventCostDescription":"","_EventCurrencySymbol":"","_EventCurrencyCode":"","_EventCurrencyPosition":"","_EventDateTimeSeparator":"","_EventTimeRangeSeparator":"","_EventOrganizerID":[],"_EventVenueID":[],"_OrganizerEmail":"","_OrganizerPhone":"","_OrganizerWebsite":"","_VenueAddress":"","_VenueCity":"","_VenueCountry":"","_VenueProvince":"","_VenueState":"","_VenueZip":"","_VenuePhone":"","_VenueURL":"","_VenueStateProvince":"","_VenueLat":"","_VenueLng":"","_VenueShowMap":false,"_VenueShowMapLink":false,"_":"","_author_alias":"","cap-aim":"","cap-description":"","cap-display_name":"","cap-first_name":"","cap-jabber":"","cap-last_name":"","cap-linked_account":"","cap-newspack_employer":"","cap-newspack_job_title":"","cap-newspack_phone_number":"","cap-newspack_role":"","cap-user_email":"","cap-user_login":"","cap-website":"","cap-yahooim":"","newspack_article_summary":"","newspack_email_html":"","newspack_email_type":"","newspack_featured_image_position":"","newspack_hide_page_title":"","newspack_hide_updated_date":false,"newspack_post_subtitle":"","newspack_show_share_buttons":"","newspack_sponsor_byline_prefix":"","newspack_sponsor_disclaimer_override":"","newspack_sponsor_flag_override":"","newspack_sponsor_only_direct":"","newspack_sponsor_url":"","newspack_article_summary_title":"Overview:","newspack_show_updated_date":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[32366],"tags":[],"newspack_spnsrs_tax":[],"coauthors":[32310],"class_list":["post-89186","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-see","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/89186","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/207"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=89186"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/89186\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":89215,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/89186\/revisions\/89215"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/89184"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=89186"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=89186"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=89186"},{"taxonomy":"newspack_spnsrs_tax","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/newspack_spnsrs_tax?post=89186"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=89186"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}