''Trafford Tanzi'' is a play by Clare Luckham.
It was originally performed as ''Tuebrook Tanzi, The Venus Flytrap'' by the
Everyman Theatre Company in
Liverpool
Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...
in 1978 before moving to
Manchester
Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...
as ''Trafford Tanzi'' in 1980,
later achieving commercial success in London.
Plot
The play is set in a
wrestling ring
A wrestling ring, also known as the squared circle, is the stage on which a professional wrestling match usually occurs. It is similarly constructed to a boxing ring and is traditionally square-shaped. In Japan, it is also common to see mixed mart ...
where the story of the title character, Tanzi, is told.
Tanzi's parents bring her up to be feminine, but she refuses to conform to traditional femininity and is labelled a tomboy.
She marries a
professional wrestler
Professional wrestling, often shortened to either pro wrestling or wrestling,The term "wrestling" is most often widely used to specifically refer to modern scripted professional wrestling, though it is also used to refer to real-life wrest ...
named Dean Rebel and supports him in his career.
Eventually, she becomes a champion professional
wrestler
Wrestling is a martial art, combat sport, and form of entertainment that involves grappling with an opponent and striving to obtain a position of advantage through different throws or techniques, within a given ruleset. Wrestling involves diffe ...
herself and finally challenges her husband Dean to a match, with the loser being required to do the housework.
In keeping with the wrestling theme, the play is divided into ten rounds, each of which ends with a bell.
All of the cast members participate in wrestling during the play, and the audience is welcome to cheer and boo the characters as though they were at an actual wrestling match.
History
The word "Trafford" in the play's title refers to the
metropolitan borough
A metropolitan borough (or metropolitan district) is a type of districts of England, local government district in England. Created in 1974 by the Local Government Act 1972, metropolitan boroughs are defined in English law as metropolitan distr ...
of
Trafford
Trafford is a metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England, with an estimated population of in . It covers and includes the area of Old Trafford (area), Old Trafford and the towns of Altrincham, Stretford, Urmston, Partington and Sa ...
in Greater Manchester, England.
The play has also been produced under a variety of other titles, including ''
Tuebrook
Tuebrook (or Tue Brook; locally ) is an area in the north-east of Liverpool, England. At the 2001 census the population was 14,490.
Toponymy
The origin of the name may be Tew Brook, a tributary of the Alt. The brook itself is now almost ent ...
Tanzi'', ''
Tarzana Tanzi'', ''
Tujunga Tanzi'', ''Turbo Tanzi'', ''
Texas
Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...
Tanzi'', ''
Tickfaw Tanzi'', and ''Tarantula Tanzi''. It was performed in French in Ottawa simply as ''Tanzi''
The play was originally performed in Trafford in 1980 by the feminist Monstrous Regiment Theatre Group.
[ The play has sometimes been described as having a "bourgeois feminist" perspective.]Toyah Willcox
Toyah Ann Willcox (born 18 May 1958) is an English singer-songwriter, actress, and television presenter. In a career spanning more than 40 years, she has had eight top 40 singles, released over 20 albums, written two books, appeared in over 40 ...
starred in a production at the Mermaid Theatre
The Mermaid Theatre was a theatre encompassing the site of Puddle Dock and Curriers' Alley at Blackfriars in the City of London, and the first built in the City since the time of Shakespeare. It was, importantly, also one of the first new th ...
in London, from March to August 1983.
Teaneck Tanzi
In 1983, the play was produced on Broadway under the title '' Teaneck Tanzi: The Venus Flytrap''.Deborah Harry
Deborah Ann Harry (born Angela Trimble, July 1, 1945) is an American singer, songwriter and actress, best known as the lead vocalist of the band Blondie. Four of her songs with the band reached on the US charts between 1979 and 1981.
Born in M ...
(lead singer of the band Blondie) and Caitlin Clarke
Caitlin Clarke (born Katherine Anne Clarke; May 3, 1952 – September 9, 2004) was an American actress best known for her roles as Valerian in the 1981 fantasy film ''Dragonslayer'' and Charlotte Cardoza in the 1998–1999 Broadway musical ...
; the role was double-cast because of the strenuous nature of the wrestling involved. Also appearing in the Broadway production was comedian Andy Kaufman
Andrew Geoffrey Kaufman ( ; January 17, 1949 – May 16, 1984) was an American entertainer and performance artist. He has sometimes been called an "anti-humor, anti-comedian". He disdained telling jokes and engaging in comedy as it was tra ...
as the referee;Jerry Lawler
Jerry O'Neil Lawler (born November 29, 1949), better known as Jerry "the King" Lawler, is an American retired color commentator and professional wrestler signed to WWE under a Legends contract.
Prior to joining the World Wrestling Federati ...
.) Despite the play's previous success in London, though, ''Teaneck Tanzi'' closed on Broadway the same day it opened.
References
External links
*{{ibdb title , id=4218 , title=Teaneck Tanzi: The Venus Flytrap
1980 plays
English plays