Monday, July 14, 2008

Germaine lets fly

It was bound to happen. Our Germaine has delivered a couple of fast left hooks at Joanna Murray-Smith, whose play based (or not based) on La Greer, The Female of the Species, opens in the West End this week. She says Murray-Smith is an "insane reactionary" and claims that, far from being a comedy, "what actually happened was a tragedy. What are they doing putting this play on in the West End of all places? Auckland in New Zealand, maybe..." Snort. Germaine, don't be a hemispheric snob, the world ain't so centrist any more. Murray-Smith claims in response that she is a feminist, although, according to Greer, she boasts of never having read a single feminist text. Well, it all makes about as much sense as the play...

Footnote: The Blogger on the Cast Iron Balcony proposes another play not based on any person living or dead. Sort of.

5 comments:

  1. One wonders why Germaine would even bother to respond to this play? The cynic in me suspects it is a wonderful plot hatched between the two to promote both the plays and keep Germaine's name in the paper!
    Josephine

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  2. I don't think Germaine exactly needs to keep her name in the British papers, since she's all over them anyway. But no doubt it's good publicity for the play.

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  3. Joanna Murray Smith must be thrilled that her play will now not sink without a trace, and that she can fuel her paranoia claiming that yet one more successful woman is out to get her. A scathing critique of Greer is sure to follow in The Age...

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  4. Put them on a stage to debate it. Charge admission. Proceeds to LaMama. My money's on Germaine...

    Jodi

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  5. To be fair to JMS, she's built quite a reputation for herself overseas, even without generational warfare. Certainly she's had much more success in the West End than Williamson.

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