←Recommendations of Venus Needs Men

"Venus Needs Men" is a hilarious send-up of several old 50's sci-fi tropes, and turns expectation on its head. Alien abductee stories usually end up with the victims horribly violated, but in this play the abductee is forced to act in a community theatre production. Actually, ALL of them. Every actor's dream becomes a nightmare....

This spoof of 50's sci-fi movies and a take on community theatre shenanigans is quick, funny, and with plenty of room for the required scenery-chewing and goofy humor. It doesn't matter that this takes place 150 million miles from Earth; the trials and tribulations of locally-sourced theatre is universal. This would be a great entry at any theatre, and I'd love to see it.

Mandryk's understanding of community theatre struggles are clear in his delightful, sharply paced satire "Venus Needs Men". Repeating the same old shows over and over, begging for set pieces, and...most importantly...the lack available male actors. And all on another planet! Hilarious. Additionally, is it chock-full of colorful characters, clever dialogue, and an opportunity to go nuts on set and costuming. From lights up to end of scene, fabulous. I'd love to see this one produced.

"Venus Needs Men" is a campy and fun depiction of how women, sometimes, indeed need men in their lives, even if it is for theater productions.

I've seen a lot of plays that poke loving fun at community theater, but never one this creative. A man has been snatched from earth and brought to Venus, where there are no men, to perform male roles for a small theater company that can offer a few comps but no stipend. This play is clever and hysterical. What a fabulous concept, perfectly executed.

“Venus Needs Men” cleverly satirizes the world of community theater, poking fun at the repetitive nature of productions like "Steel Magnolias" and the challenges of finding male actors for roles. The play's witty dialogue, humorous characters, and satirical take on gender dynamics and community theater make it a wonderfully relatable piece.

So much that is so funny is going on in this play. From the hysterical premise, to the eager Venutian producer and director, to laconic Lucas who is surprisingly non-plussed by the odd situation in which he finds himself, the elements of the narrative are consistently lunatic and consistently hilarious.

Ah, one of the sad truisms of theater brought into hysterical light by Mandryk in this tale that will have you laughing from start to finish.

Ah, one of the sad truisms of theater brought into hysterical light by Mandryk in this tale that will have you laughing from start to finish.

So. Beneath the Venusian atmosphere of carbon dioxide clouds, beneath the planet's surface, is a network of community theaters. Who knew? Just one problem. All the males on the planet have been extinct for millennia, leaving the surviving females to produce an unending repertoire of "Steel Magnolias." So they import an earthling male, the most laid-back earthling male one could ever hope to find. He has no acting experience, but the ladies are willing to cast him in anything just to get a little theatrical variety. And that's all they want from him. It's hilarious.