Performance Review

The English American
by Alison Larkin

Reviewed by Charles Filius

If I had a nickel for every time I've been told, "There's nothing funny about adoption!" I'd be thrust into the financial class reserved for those who bicker over who is buying the remains of The Elephant Man. A small handful have stepped forward who dare poke fun at this allegedly sacred bovine. These humor pioneers dared what many considered the unthinkable. The tongue has been planted firmly in the cheek to accomplish something quite simple: Raise Public Awareness. (This is, of course, the politically correct way of saying, "Proving, yet again, just how screwed up the adoption system truly is.) One of the many quirks that drew me to Bastard Nation was their acceptance of a blatantly reverent irreverence towards the subject. This small band of proud, trailblazing gypsies has been joined by another loud voice: Alison Larkin.

Alison is an adoptee who was raised by British parents in England and Africa. Upon receiving her original birth certificate by simply asking for it (the English aren't as civilized as we Colonists, don'cha know? We keep that information from adoptees while those Brits have the nerve to just hand it over willy-nilly! Blimey!), she discovered that she was originally from Bald Mountain, Tennessee. As she boasts so proudly in her proper English accent, "I'm a redneck!" Take it from one who knows true trailer trash on sight: she really is one of us.

The English American, a one-woman show written and performed by Larkin, is a schizophrenic romp through Larkin's search and reunion. She portrays herself, her adoptive and birth mothers, and a few other dead-on characterizations throughout the 90 minute production. Each character has a solid dimension all its very own. You aren't seeing a woman doing a multitude of voices. You're witnessing a transformation of body and soul that takes place in the blink of an eye. Merely close your eyes and you will believe she's sharing the stage with someone else. Of course, if you hear multiple voices at any other time you may wish to seek professional help, but this isn't the forum.

"Everyone should be adopted," Larkin says."That way you can meet your birth parents at an age when you can cope with them."

Larkin whirls her audience through some of the most personal events in her life as if she were a guide at a Civil War battlefield. The horror of the events are obscured by the enthusiasm of a compelling, heart-driven presentation. We're observers as well as participants, to the point where that fragile line between the two is not just blurred…it's tossed aside with wild abandon. We witness the emotions and thoughts of all members of the triad and embrace them in a way that makes us comfortable. She waves the absurdity of sealed records like a banner for all to see. She is not hiding, she is not being ‘the good adoptee', and she is not spouting the tripe the unenlightened media and legislation love to spew. She is simply telling the truth as only a Bastard can.

You will walk away from this performance having thoroughly enjoyed yourself and surprised you've also been educated. Isn't that delightfully deceptive? The only dancing around the elephant in the living room is a conga line in which the entire audience willingly takes part.

The English American ("adoption's first comedy album") is available on CD at www.amazon.com for $22.95, or at the special rate of $15.95 via www.alisonlarkin.com. It was recently voted number one adoption gift pick by Nancy Ashe on About.com - ahead of Mike Leigh's British adoption film, Secrets and Lies.

Charles A. Filius is the Bastard Nation CA state director as well as Art & Publications Chair. He is a professional cartoonist and resides in Fullerton, CA. His website can be found at www.plumsite.com/filius.

(This feature appeared in the Winter 2002 issue of the Bastard Quarterly.)