#52: “And Baby Makes Seven” by Paula Vogel
Okay, I have a confession to make. I actually read this play back in February. And the only reason I read it (aside from the fact that I love Paula Vogel; teach me your ways, Paula!) was because I was afraid that I was writing the same play. I thought that I was stealing her premise without ever having read a word. Fortunately, that was not the case.
This surreal (yet pseudo-naturalistic) play about a lesbian couple and a gay man that decide to raise a child together teeters on the unfathomable, but in a good way. These characters all have child alter-egos, characters that they embody in an inverse of children playing house. They truly believe (or adamantly pretend) that there are six of them already (hence the title) and are preparing to bring a child into this chaotic world. Vogel’s grasp of this real-yet-fantastical world is so engaging that I couldn’t decide whether I should feel sorry for this family or root for their success.
