Theater review by Raven Snook
Liliana Padilla's audacious How to Defend Yourself provides an exciting high that is followed by a haunting hangover. When a college student is raped by a pair of male classmates, two of her sorority sisters—the tightly wound martial-arts expert Brandi (Talia Ryder) and the statuesque, acerbic Kara (Sarah Marie Rodriguez)—host an impromptu self-defense class in a run-down gym. Brandi leads a series of exercises for the small group, which includes the unhappily still-virginal Mojdeh (Ariana Mahallati), her sex-and-gun-obsessed pal Diana (Gabriela Ortega) and the deceptively meek Nikki (Amaya Braganza), with an assist from two dudes: player Andy (Sebastian Delascasas) and perennial friend-zone denizen Eggo (Jayson Lee). The students learn self-protection moves in stylized, choreographed interstitials; they also explore how to communicate desire and consent. Trouble is, most of them don't know what they want—or, worse, are ashamed by what turns them on.
While the play has hackneyed moments—notably a sudden girl-on-girl kiss, the only overt nod to queerness in the show—many of the interactions feel real and raw, vibrating with authenticity and considerable humor. Padilla doesn't peddle a simplified #MeToo, #AllMen message. How to Defend Yourself is a tumultuous and surprisingly entertaining investigation of how all of us are warped by rape culture, and how the tools we use to deal with it aren't just physical: We also learn to hide in plain sight, please predators and lie about our experiences. Sometimes those choices have unexpected repercussions.
In an unusual partnership, How to Defend Yourself has three directors: the playwright, choreographer Steph Paul and Hadestown helmer Rachel Chavkin. It’s not clear where their individual contributions begin and end, but when the stagecraft breaks open toward the end of the show, the sequence has Chavkin written all over it. To me, it felt jarring and exhilarating—though some, perhaps, may find it awkward and manipulative. Like a night of drunken debauchery, the play leaves you unsure later of what has happened and how you feel about it.
How to Defend Yourself. New York Theatre Workshop (Off Broadway). By Liliana Padilla. Directed by Padilla, Rachel Chavkin and Steph Paul. With ensemble cast. Running time: 1hr 40mins. No intermission.
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How to Defend Yourself | Photograph: Courtesy Joan Marcus