Revenge Song

Go Deeper: Reading, Listening & More

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Revenge Song

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Early engraving of Julie D'Aubigny

A real-life rule-breaker

Revenge Song is based on the life of Julie d’Aubigny, a 17th-century opera singer, cross-dresser, bisexual, and swordfighter whose love life was fictionalized in the 1835 novel La Maupin. For more on d’Aubigny, go to our link to the Los Angeles Public Library’s in-depth article on her life and career.

 

“Theories and Effects of Political Humor: Discounting Cues, Gateways, and the Impact of Incongruities”

Revenge Song is as political as it is hilarious, and this article in The Oxford Handbook of Political Communication offers a historical perspective on the use of satire. The play uses various jokes and scenarios to examine normative, binary social constructs and inspire us to imagine a world beyond them. “Satire questions the existing political or social order,” the article’s author, Dannagal G. Young, states, “usually by juxtaposing the existing imperfect reality with visions of what could or should be. So, while satire can be biting and even aggressive in tenor, the underlying premise of a satirical text is often optimistic, as it suggests we (collectively) deserve better. In the words of Bloom and Bloom (1979), ‘The satirist who goes about his task skillfully gives the reader a double reward: the pleasure of an aesthetic experience coupled with the reasonable hope that a stable political order may be attainable.’”

—Regina Victor, Revenge Song dramaturg


Listen

Qui Nguyen

“Superheroes, Stage Fights, and Stealth Diversity”

In this 2020 Variety podcast interview, playwright Qui Nguyen delves into the history of Vampire Cowboys and the creation of Revenge Song.

 

The music!

Like the music of Revenge Song? The show’s creative team has recommendations—oh, do they ever—for songs you might like. Have a listen.

Femme and Punk POC playlist

World Hip-Hop playlist

’80s Hair Metal playlist


View and Watch

Photo of four colorful handmade zines

Punk + Femme + ’90s

Revenge Song is heavily influenced by the femme punk culture of the 1990s, and an offshoot of that culture is zines—non-commercial magazines in the form of booklets, devoted to specific and sometimes controversial or unconventional subject matter. They were usually homemade and comprised of collage and text, photocopied and hand-distributed. For images, see Behance’s gallery, “Punk zines 1970–90 phenomenon.”

 

The pop culture references!

If some of the rapid-fire references in Revenge Song sound familiar—or maybe they don’t—check out these video clips of pop culture phenomena they’re riffing on.

Drop Challenge, Saturday Night Live

Drop Challenge, TwinsFromRussia

One Day More (particularly around 4:15)