"Bluffing"--a 10-minute comedy

[Dr. Richard Grossman]

Hi everybody,

Here's my latest Boston Theater Marathon (2017) entry:

"Bluffing"

Four old women meet for their weekly game of poker. But all isn't what it seems--somebody's bluffing! A 10-minute comedy...

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/690317

Thanks for the read!  All comments/reviews are welcome...

Richard

[lighter]

Dr. G:

What ornery old women.  I would be very  upset if my mother did that TO me. 

Poor Marty..... and Evalyn's dd.  Couldn't they just ask their kids?

Hmmm......

I just asked my oldest dd questions about my parenting.  She's hard line refusing to partake.   Hmmmm...
::making mental note to consider bluffing her in my old age:: 

She read the play so I'll have to come up with something she won't recognize.

My youngest had no problem rattling off answers, so she'll get a pass. 

It's sad that we can't just have conversations with those we love.   

Well done, Doc.  I liked the play enough to read again.  My favorite is still the baseball play: )

Lighter

[Dr. Richard Grossman]

Hi Lighter,

Thank you so much for reading "Bluffing"!  That you came back to it and read it again meant a lot to me.  And I thought it really funny that you gave it to your older daughter to read!

About the play:  “Absence makes the heart grow fonder.”   I was thinking:  What good is that if the absent person never knows a heart has grown fonder?  So perhaps these cranky old women were onto something…

And then the bigger question:  How do you know what your kids really think of you?

BTW, I agree, I don’t think "Bluffing" compares to “Suicide Squeeze,” the baseball play.  "Suicide Squeeze" is full of complexity—but I was wondering if that was one of the reasons the play was not selected for the Boston Theater Marathon.  People are much more into sitcoms these days, and it’s rare someone ponders in detail the characters and the subtext of a work—particularly in a 10-minute play.  So, I quickly wrote “Bluffing” at submission time—it’s much simpler and as a result I thought it might have more crowd appeal.

But, again, thank you so much for the read and your wonderful comment!

Richard

[Hopalong]

Hi Richard,
Sorry it took me a while.
I enjoyed its truth, though I'm not a reliable reader of this stereotype (guilt-inducing Mom).

I thought the pacing and timing was very good.
And some of the lines were really funny.
I think it must be as hard to write a 10-minute play as a good koan. And you did it!

I wonder what it'd be like if the next "bluffer" took things in a different direction?
And the questions she demanded answers to weren't needy but challenging?

There's something about this image of old women/mothers that I experience as demeaning.
As caricatures--though I have sure met plenty of them. How culture can twist mothering
into a desperate thing. I cringe when I see women so enmeshed and so empty at
the same time. ("The only thing that gives me meaning is an external source, my
family's praise.") Whether it's N-ish or not it sure is uncomfortable to witness.

And that discomfort or that exaggeration may have been exactly your point!

I think this play is clever and controlled at the same time. Nice going, Richard.

Thanks for sharing,
Hops

[Dr. Richard Grossman]

Hi Hops,

Thanks for your thoughtful comments!  Perhaps because I’m not an old woman—just an old man—I did not feel so negatively about the women or what they did.  As a “realist,” I always want to know the truth about relationships, however painful—and if these women decided that this was the only way…

In addition, for me, the nature/quality of my relationships provides the meaning of life—so there’s even more reason to find out the hidden “truths” before one dies.

Of course, one might argue that moments such as these lead to even more fiction because of the dire situation—and people in these situations are even more prone to lie in a positive way.  That’s why the observers (in the play) are there to judge.

So, for me “Bluffing” is a complicated, but (I hope) funny tale of deception/manipulation.

Thanks again for your read and comments—I so appreciate them!

Richard

[Hopalong]

I'm going to read it again, Richard.
It deserves a more layered reading than that quick take.

You're right, it's complicated.
I was reacting to what felt like a stereotype but I may have missed the message.

Thanks for the comments, which broadened it for me.

love,
Hops

[lighter]

Doc G:

Setting:  Tuesday's telephone conference with DD and her T.....

DD16 references your play, Bluffing, and explains it to the T!  It was exciting, and I thought you'd like to know; )

Lighter

[sea storm]

I liked the play. It got the message through loud and clear ie. how desperate mothers are to know that they were good mom's . These tiger mom's want to know and there seems to be no other way to communicate with the people they know in an authentic, honest, shock treatment fashion to get an honest answer.
I think women from that generation, and that includes me, were so straightjacketed by convention and by lack of information on how to communicate  that it is no surprise that they are driven to the extreme limits to find out the truth.
If moms screw up and miss the boat etc when their kids are young, it is often too late to undue the damage.

What I wonder about in this play is why the moms do this? On the surface it looks very hard ass and cynical. I actually don't know any women like this, but I do know older women who regret losing the love of their children or who are curious about where their relationship stands. The conventions they were raised with don"t allow for deeply emotional questioning and response.  It seems to be up to the children to show their moms the way, if possible.

This may seem shmaltsy but if I wall this mom's kid, I would welcome the opportunity to go at it and unravel it. So the ten minute play is the start and not the end, just like one of the old lady says.

Sea storm

[Dr. Richard Grossman]

Hi Lighter and Sea Storm,

Sorry for the delay in responding—I’ve been visiting my 91 y.o. father and trying to work out the details necessary in getting him to move to my neck of the woods (Brookline, MA from Long Island, NY) for the last stage of his life.

Lighter:  I can think of nothing better re: one of my plays than the way your daughter used it!  Thank you for letting me know!  I’ll always remember that!

Sea Storm:  I don’t know any women who would do what these women did, either.  For me, part of the comedy is in the over-the-top, but none-the-less effective strategy.  And yes, I had empathy for the son who was put through this.  Maybe someday we’ll hear the rest of his story!

Thank you both for your comments!

Richard

[lighter]

((Doc G:))

Good luck with your Father's transition.  I know how difficult it is on the elderly to go through a move.  It's hard on the loved ones too.

About the humor in your play...... it was the flippant way the old gals used potato chips, while pretending to be playing a serious game of poker, that struck me as funny. 

They didn't work at the ruse....... they were sure their children would never notice they were the ones being played.   Of course, they were right.

Lighter