Family faces struggle as they begin “˜Looking for Normal’

  Geffen Playhouse (left to right) Jordan
Bridges and Beau Bridges chat in "Looking
for Normal."

By Mary Williams
Daily Bruin Staff

“Looking For Normal,” the latest production at the
Geffen Playhouse, starts out rather innocently as a story about the
love between a man and a woman. And then, the man starts to wear
skirts and prepares to undergo a sex change operation.

The play, showing through May 6 in Westwood Village, uses this
unusual twist in a commonplace story of marital problems and
enduring love to introduce an intriguing analysis of the
ramifications of transsexuality, homosexuality and the physical
changes that can occur, either naturally or unnaturally, in the
body.

Smoothly blending comedic and dramatic scenes, and performed by
an excellent cast, “Looking For Normal” examines the
perceptions and realities of the conditions in which the characters
find themselves. No detail is missed and two of the characters, a
brother and sister, even perform a series of hilarious monologues,
complete with props, diagrams and a pointer, describing the
scientific side of the changes in their parents’ bodies, and
their own.

Although Beau Bridges, as Roy the transsexual father, is the
star of the show, and seeing him in a demure skirt and low heels is
alone worth the ticket price, it is Laurie Metcalf, playing his
wife Irma, who brings the family’s struggle to life.

Metcalf’s performance is the most compelling of the
evening. It displays not only Irma’s anger and sadness at the
discovery that her husband wants to have a sex change operation,
but also the love she still feels for the man she married,
regardless of his outward appearance.

Another fantastic performance is given by Becky Wahlstrom as
Patty Ann, Roy and Irma’s daughter. Her monologues, in
particular, provide some of the funniest moments in the play.

In the best of these such moments, Patty Ann describes the sex
change operation her father is about to have, with props she could
have found in her family’s kitchen. Using Ziploc bags and
fruit, she replicates, with amazing anatomical correctness, the
procedure used ““ as she says, to turn “an outie into an
innie.”

The most difficult role in the play, however, belongs to
Bridges, who performs it capably. Though he doesn’t display
as much emotional range as Metcalf, nor look as good in a dress, he
is still convincing as both a hardworking husband and a woman
trapped in a man’s body.

In an interesting real-life parallel, Roy’s son Wayne is
played by Beau Bridges’ son, Jordan. The two work well
together on stage and their scenes benefit from this added
dimension.

All the actors are given a chance to shine in the play, which is
structured so that most actors have monologues and all have both
comedic and dramatic scenes. The structure of “Looking For
Normal” is actually one of its strong points. In dealing
with personal issues such as sexuality and family relations, the
opportunity the monologues offer for the characters to address the
audience without any inhibitions or softening of language is an
asset.

The monologues also provide a chance for characters to describe
the changes in their own bodies and to remark freely on what is
happening to Roy’s body. Scenes with Roy’s parents
and his bisexual grandmother Ruth, played by Michael Learned, add
the perspectives of the conservative farm-owning couple on
masculinity and the reality of violence toward transsexuals.

By the end of the evening, all aspects of this bizarre situation
are examined, providing an intriguing character study and
ultimately, a story of love.

After all the laughter and tears, “Looking For
Normal” boils down to one important question: Can two people
still love each other after one or both undergoes a physical
alteration? Each character must deal with this dilemma and each
comes up with his or her own answer. The journey to that answer is
well worth watching.

THEATER: “Looking For Normal” shows
at the Geffen Playhouse through May 6. Performances are
Tuesdays through Thursdays at 7:30 p.m., Fridays at 8 p.m.,
Saturdays at 4 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m.
Tickets are available at the Geffen Box Office at (310) 208-5454 or
through Ticketmaster at (213) 365-3500.