Play a luscious mix of entertainment, shock, passion

Most plays do not open with a scene of two lesbian lovers caressing one another and talking candidly about sex. But the Bloomington Playwrights Project's new show, "Sex/Death II" is not the average showcase of the ins and outs of modern relationships, and so it's OK to bend the rules a little. Some very impressive rule-breaking was witnessed during this morbid play's two-hour run that is all at once dramatic, poignant, hysterical and shockingly violent.\nThe six-vignette show came to the producers, Gilana Alpert and David Mickler, by way of various submissions to the BPP. Following the success of "Sex/Death I," the pair chose stories that would run consistent to the expectations of the audience that loved the first, but would also feature new and interesting storylines.\n"I think that it's definitely different from the first, it's tamer. The first had a lot more nudity, a lot more violence," said director of "Sappho's Choice," Corine C. Blue. "It's a little more human."\nAssembling a show like "Sex/Death II" is no easy task. Each cadence must be free-flowing and coherent, aligned with the next. "Sex/Death II" pulled this off admirably well, allowing each vignette to stand on its own, but always clearly tied to the overall theme of the show. \nIn one of the funnier moments of the show, a woman engaging in casual sex with a relative stranger commented on the overlapping thoughts of men and women during such an encounter. \n"Well, at least he's motivated," she said during their tryst. When he failed to deliver on the desired level, she quickly got frustrated and "faked it" to get him to leave.\n"It's hysterical, because it's every woman," said Roshaunda Russ, the female actress in the segment. "It's a true-to-life representation."\nKris Lee, director of the segment "Period," thought it was important the actors be comfortable with their onstage actions. \n"We first had a really frank discussion," Lee said. "With a scene like this, you can't act it as much as mean it."\nAnother hilarious moment was during an online encounter in a segment called "Cyber Sex," where a couple of Internet junkies decide to venture into the world of fantasy sex. The female partner, portrayed hilariously by Renee Reed, and the male partner, an equally entertaining Matthew Pernic, have very different interpretations of online intimacy. \nA dramatic and poignant segment involved the troubled mind of a suppressed and disheartened scientist and the relationship he maintains with his estranged wife. The scene played beautifully, with pitch-perfect timing on the part of the director Jeremy Wilson. Kevin Roach, who portrayed the mentally unstable but insightful and brilliant scientist, played the part with utter confidence and complete submersion into his character's psyche of self-despair. \n"At first, I didn't really like it," said Roach, a sophomore majoring in theater. "The more I read it, the more I began to like it and realized it's not meant to be read, it's meant to be acted."\nThroughout the scene titled "Pink Skin," the lead actor is required to be completely nude. At first, this detail seemed like it would present some discomfort or distraction for the audience. However, because of the well-written storyline and intense dialogue, the viewer begins to forget about the nudity and concentrate on the substance of the scene. \nOther impressive moments included a hilarious scene between a groom-to-be and his best friend on the night of his bachelor party in the segment, "The Bachelor Party," and a beautifully choreographed performance art piece called "The Dance." In this piece, a group of sensually draped and sexually motivated dancers engaged in a tango of dance, while two actors in the forefront talked about the frustrations of desire and the joy involved in searching for the right lover.\n"Sex/Death II" had many recurring themes, the most basic being the obvious sex and violence. But in the end, it's a show that combines those elements and manages to be articulate and substantial in the process of shocking and entertaining its unsuspecting audience.