Review: POTUS at Steppenwolf Theatre Company

Selina Fillinger’s POTUS: OR, BEHIND EVERY GREAT DUMBASS ARE SEVEN WOMEN TRYING TO KEEP HIM ALIVE has farce-within-a-farce energy. Fillinger draws on the conventions of classic farce as a day in the White House for seven women working for the President (or otherwise connected to him) try to contain POTUS’s messes. In this way, it’s obvious that Fillinger wants to infuse POTUS with “f*ck the patriarchy” energy and assert that it’s the women behind powerful male political figures who are the ones really making things happen. While it’s a clever and intriguing concept, Fillinger’s play doesn’t go that deep. I don’t think POTUS  offers deep political or social commentary, even though the play certainly underscores that competent women in positions of power are usually overlooked. 

That said, POTUS does offer fun and antics that are cleverly set up and performed by director Audrey Francis’s ensemble. If you’re looking to laugh at the absurdity of American politics and infrastructure, POTUS definitely offers that. And it offers some delicious farcical character studies. At the beginning of the play, Chief of Staff Harriet (the impeccable Sandra Marquez) and White House Press Secretary Jean (Karen Rodriguez, hilariously frazzled) are already at wit’s end after POTUS (who is not himself a character in the play) utters a profane statement about his wife in front of visiting politicians. As evidenced by Regina García’s set, which features a rotating centerpiece, Harriet and Jean are constantly trying to keep up with the chaos of the White House...but they cannot move fast enough to keep up with POTUS’s messes. It’s a visual symbol that works well, and as with a typical farce, the chaos only continues. 

POTUS’s sister Bernadette (Meighan Gerachis) arrives on the scene, newly released from prison (and ready to resume her role as the White House’s unofficial drug dealer). White House correspondent Chris (Celeste M. Cooper) just wants to conduct an interview with FLOTUS Margaret (Karen Aldridge) for an upcoming profile...but naturally she finds much more to her story. POTUS’s harried, meek secretary Stephanie (Caroline Neff) is trying desperately to keep up with Harriet’s endless requests, all while listening to her playlist of girl power anthems to psych herself up. And the arrival of the outspoken, sexually liberated Dusty (Chloe Baldwin), a young woman from a farming town who has a surprising (though predictable) connection to POTUS, really threatens to upend it all.

Though the play is only an hour and forty-five minutes, Fillinger’s farce builds to a logical conclusion at the end of the first act. POTUS starts as a simmer and, of course, ends at a full boil. The second act is chaotic but engrossing, though the play deviates from traditional farce with its ambiguous ending. The play does present strong, opinionated female characters, though as part of the farce, Fillinger demonstrates that women in politics can be every bit as crass, brazen, bold, and sexually deviant as men. But Fillinger clearly wants to posit that someone like one of these incredibly accomplished women deserves to hold the POTUS title. After all, Stephanie speaks five languages and Margaret runs five non-profits and holds degrees from Harvard and Stanford. 

This production of POTUS is truly enjoyable because of the knock-out performances, even if the farce doesn’t offer meaty political commentary. Marquez has always known how to command a stage, so Harriet is a natural fit for her. Rodriguez swings between moments of clear-headedness (Jean always has a positive spin up her sleeve) and utter bafflement; it’s a delightful combination. Neff is hysterical as Stephanie, first when she’s meek and overwhelmed, and then after an unfortunate encounter with Bernadatte’s stash, she becomes funnier and funnier while under the influence. Watching Neff run back and forth across the stage while on her trip is endlessly hilarious. Neff flits at a breakneck pace across the stage, transforming a character who’s usually mild-mannered and shy into a performance of frenetic decisiveness. Cooper is more grounded as new mom Chris, though she has plenty of antics as she tries to balance her role as a journalist with the responsibilities of new motherhood. Aldrige brings a regal presence to Margaret, even as her character dons Crocs to appear “earthy.” Gerachis offers pure comic relief as Bernadette. Baldwin is funny and committed as Dusty; at times, she makes Dusty seem like an airhead, but she also reveals the character’s more assertive side (even if it’s discomfiting that the character offers to perform sexual acts on members of the Secret Service as a distraction). 

I think the fact that POTUS is so over-the-top makes it entertaining, but it’s also what prevents the play from taking on deeper meaning. This is a fun, female-driven farce. It’s a good reminder that a lot of American politics seems to involve competent women cleaning up after incompetent men — and the play hits on that message well. It’s a crazy, raunchy good time that I enjoyed, but I don’t think it delivers sharply on deeper themes or meanings. It’s best to sit back and enjoy the ride of just another insane day at this White House. 

POTUS; OR, BEHIND EVERY GREAT DUMBASS ARE SEVEN WOMEN TRYING TO KEEP HIM ALIVE plays the Downstairs Theater at Steppenwolf Theatre Company, 1650 North Halsted, through December 17, 2023. 

Photo Credit: Michael Brosilow

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