Maneater

by Emmy Potter

10-15 MIN PLAY. Tensions of all kinds rise when a rising star female chef has dinner with the prominent male food critic who wrote a scathing review of her new restaurant. What starts as a flirtatious dinner to "clear the air" quickly devolves into a game of sex, power, and gender roles (as well as an examination of all the black, white, and grey areas of the #MeToo Movement) in this taut, 10-15 minute...

10-15 MIN PLAY. Tensions of all kinds rise when a rising star female chef has dinner with the prominent male food critic who wrote a scathing review of her new restaurant. What starts as a flirtatious dinner to "clear the air" quickly devolves into a game of sex, power, and gender roles (as well as an examination of all the black, white, and grey areas of the #MeToo Movement) in this taut, 10-15 minute psychosexual black comedy. Don't you ever play with your food?

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Maneater

Recommended by

  • Aly Kantor: Maneater

    What do critics owe artists, and is there a level of criticism that goes too far? Can a transactional relationship between critic and artist ever amount to anything honest? What about when there's a gendered power imbalance at play? This play asks those questions in the form of an intimate dinner date between a female chef and the scathing male food critic who bashed her. The stakes only grow as we realize exactly how much power one party has over the other. I love the reversal and the whiplash moment of realizing who had regained the reins! Funny, sexy work!

    What do critics owe artists, and is there a level of criticism that goes too far? Can a transactional relationship between critic and artist ever amount to anything honest? What about when there's a gendered power imbalance at play? This play asks those questions in the form of an intimate dinner date between a female chef and the scathing male food critic who bashed her. The stakes only grow as we realize exactly how much power one party has over the other. I love the reversal and the whiplash moment of realizing who had regained the reins! Funny, sexy work!

  • David Meyers: Maneater

    A provocative take on discrimination, criticism, and empowerment -- Maneater will play with your expectations, subvert them, and make you laugh in the process.

    A provocative take on discrimination, criticism, and empowerment -- Maneater will play with your expectations, subvert them, and make you laugh in the process.

Character Information

1 M, 1 W
  • Man
    Character Age
    40s
    Character Race/Ethnic Identity
    Any (but probably white)
    Character Gender Identity
    Presents Male
  • Woman
    Character Age
    late 20s/mid 30s
    Character Race/Ethnic Identity
    Any
    Character Gender Identity
    Presents Female

Development History

  • Type Reading, Organization Alan Gordon Studio, Year 2018

Production History

  • Type Professional, Organization The Players Theatre (NYC), Year 2019