For its first post-pandemic production, IU Theatre is pleased to present The Well of Horniness, by Holly Hughes. Equal parts film noir, radio play, and perfomance experiment, The Well of Horniness is a raunchy, rowdy, all-women production that re-visits classic characters—the hard-boiled detective and oblivious cops, the femme fatale, the lady in distress—in a breathless and lively comment on texts like The Well of Loneliness, a dour novel of lesbian isolation. This genre- and gender-busting play offers women who love other women, women running from their own sexuality and, well, women running the show.
Holly Hughes – lesbian crusader, feminist icon, and one of the NEA 4 – has been pushing the boundaries of performance throughout her career and Well is no exception. Written in 1983, incubated at the WOW Cafe in New York City, and in continuous production since then, The Well of Horniness forwards women as leads in a very funny farce.
Hoosier native RJ Hodde directs. A soon-to-graduate MFA candidate in Directing at IU, Hodde is also a graduate of the conservatory at Chicago’s DePaul University and the Dell’Arte International School of Physical Theatre in California. At IU Theatre, he’s directed The Servant of Two Masters, adapted and directed Streamers by David Rabe, and associate directed Robert O’Hara’s Barbecue. In 2020, he was awarded Kennedy Center’s award in Innovative Teaching for his course in Camp and Clown as modes of actor-character training.
Filling out the creative team for the show are visiting guest artist Jerrilyn Lanier (Costume Designer), faculty members Andrew Hopson (Sound Design) and Jenny McKnight (Intimacy Consultant), M.F.A candidates Chris Mills (Dramaturgy), Corey Goulden-Naitove (Lighting Design), Rachel Rose Burke (Scenic Designer), and undergraduate Onyea Cummings (Stage Manager). The all-women+ cast includes M.F.A candidates Jayne Deely, Leah Mueller, and Caroline Sanchez.
The College of Arts