With frustrations over high rents and a pervasive suspicion that Portland is turning into a mere amusement park for the young and wealthy, the work of Jean Genet—famous critic of the bourgeoisie—has resurfaced just in time. Public Citizen Theatre’s inaugural production is a faithful performance of The Maids, featuring Martin Crimp’s translation and Aaron Filyaw’s directorial debut. The play about murderous servants feels contemporary some 69 years after Genet penned it. Sure, live-in maids aren’t much found in middle-class homes these days, but the existential desperation at the core of Genet’s drama is woefully timely.
The plot is thought to be loosely based on a real-life murder in the 1930s of a woman and her daughter by their maids, two overworked siblings. The notorious case led to much debate among French intellectuals as to the cause and meaning of these acts. The same questions persist in Genet’s play, whose sister-maids are named Claire (Ahna Dunn-Wilder) and Solange (Amanda Mehl). When left alone, they engage in an elaborate, sadomasochistic roleplaying game, taking turns at acting the part of their mistress while the other sister kills her. They dress in their mistress’ fine clothing, set a timer, keep an eye out the window, and don’t ever seem to have enough time to “finish” the enactment by seeing it through to the mistress’ death. Until tonight.