A poignant, timely, clever, on-point thought-provoking, and self-deprecating one woman show “My Uterus; A Womb With a View” by Dina Morrone, playwright, actress, comedian and voice over artist was a huge success recently with a captivated audience laughing out loud and clapping throughout. Written and performed by Morrone, the solo stage show took place Sunday March 24, 2024 at the historic Theatre West in Los Angeles to a packed, attentive and welcoming crowd. Riveted from the moment Morrone took the stage, and throughout as she performed endless short attached vignettes as part of a big story that flows and highlights the point of view of a woman and all she must endure living with a uterus.
The piece looks at what it means to own one as a woman but how the world thinks it belongs to governments, religions and opinions. It accurately looks at the meaning of this very controversial organ that all women possess but have little control over when really examined. To find humor and such poignancy is not easy to do but Morrone seamlessly meshes humor with messaging like a delicate waltz gracefully floating across the floor. Her master of many accents, facial expressions, gusto, and boldness-of-being make for a great show that can keep you interested on one person for a full hour. She digs deep into the pelvic cavity to explore what the uterus really is, what it means to own one and the power of it. She probes and examines how it continues to have problems again and again by those who have – no ownership. It is insightful that you can’t help but feel more informed by the end of the show. For many women, they will relate to every line. For men, it is eye-opening that they can’t help but feel facinated by her observations.
How this performance came about…well, it took years and years. This play was many years in the making. Morrone had picked up her notes and put down her notes over the years. She worked on it but never made it into anything concrete. As Morrone tells it exactly, after years and years of working through this piece, one day she put it down and said “I’m not doing this anymore.” Then a few things changed in the world and women’s rights was in the forefront of the news again. Presto – what a perfect time – now.
Her director Peter Flood, who has worked on projects for Walt Disney Studios, Universal Studios, Paramount, Sony SPE, and National Geographic Films, entered the picture and the play gelled.
She said the time was ripe for this type of material. She picked up those pages of notes and scripts again, and formed them into newsworthy, back-to-back, tiny micro vignettes from different points of views but not from ‘her’ point of view, but rather the point of view of the uterus (which isn’t so funny in itself but one must take a step back and find the humor we now see otherwise the frustration can be overwhelming for a woman.) The uterus, can be funny and this play’s observations are so truthful and so on the mark.
It’s a one hour stage show that takes you from doctors and people in the world who want to control it. As a woman we relate to everything she says while for men – it is an eye-opener of another perspective. (this play can bring the sexes together)
Her insights are accurate and her humor makes it digestible but it really is – food for thought – when you leave the theatre. this way of storytelling has the makings of an HBO special (minus one section with an x-rated word.) I hope HBO or Netflix scouts her or she finds them to bring it to the masses. In these times – the newsworthiness is powerful and yet funny to see it from this internal point of view.
Theatre West presented the stimulating, and funny show as part of its Women’s History Month programming.
Morrone describes what this organ does inj the world scheme of things and what it represents while assessing what it’s like to have one while letting us know what she thinks of those who have no right to be there. (Actually, what many woman think.) She is speaking for many of the gender in her observations….that created laughs….and we all know that humor is created when the nerve is touched.
Dina Morrone strikes gold again with her latest – My Uterus; A Womb with a View
About Dina Morrone
Morrone is the winner of the Valley theatre Award for her solo show “The Italian in Me” which was based on a chance meeting with maestro Federico Fellini in Rome. Her next production was the one woman “Moose on the Loose” which was a comedy about an Italian family and a moose in her homeland of Canada which won four Scenie Awards. when. Morrone when not writing her solo shows, plays and short stories, she is editor and contributing writer for the socially conscious lifestyle publication “The Eden Magazine” and she is a voice over talent for TV and movies.
About Theatre West
Established in 1962, it’s celebrating its 62nd year as the oldest continually running professional theatre company in Los Angeles. It is a membership collective of actors, playwrights, directors and technicians. Alumni have included: Jack Nicholson, Sally Field, Carroll O’Conner, Beau Bridges, Richard Dreyfuss, Martin Landau to name a few. It has produced more than 300 plays and musicals. Of these plays, nearly 70% are original works developed in its workshops and many have led to Broadway, regional tours an d feature films. Theatre West is supported in part by The Ahmanson Foundation, California Arts Council, Peter Glenville Foundation, The Green Foundation, Kaplan-Loring Foundation, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors through the Los Angeles County Department of Arts and Culture, Los Angeles Department of cultural Affairs, National Endowment for the Arts, Lloyd E. Rigler-Lawrence E. Deutsch Foundation, Sidney Stern Memorial; Trust, Dwight Stuart Youth Fund and L.A. Parent Magazine.
