Deidra Edwards and Jonathan Bray excel as the unlikely lovers in the revival of Neil LaBute’s Fat Pig now running at the Hudson Mainstage Theater in Hollywood. Bray plays Tom, a handsome business executive who falls for Helen, a zaftigyoung woman played by Edwards. In many other societies, large-sized women are much in demand; not so in the USA, where to be considered beautiful and desirable a woman must resemble a store-window mannequin.
The affair between Tom and Helen is put to the societal test almost immediately when Carter (Nick Stabile), Tom’s office buddy, gets wind of it and passes derisive remarks about her. Even more pressure is put on Tom by another fellow-worker of his, Jeannie (Kirsten Kollender), who thinks of herself as his girlfriend. Slim and sexy, she can’t believe that he prefers that “fat pig” to her. Her anger at being rejected fills LaBute’s play with much of its sound and fury, and turns some of its confrontation scenes into wild and hilarious slugfests.
Mostly, though, Fat Pig is a study in character. The play looks closely at Tom and tests his convictions in an uncompromising way. Does this decent if conflicted man have the courage to defy convention and follow through on his love for Helen? Is he a man or a wimp?
Fat Pig’s fine cast and expert direction help make this production the success it is. Hazel Kuang’s cleverly designed set is a big plus, as well.
