Sunday Salon – Sodom by John Wilmot, 2nd Earl of Rochester

Explore classic and/or provocative plays. Held in APL’s Downstairs Studio, each Salon is a unique and engaging assembly of Artists, Intellectuals, Provocateurs, Friends, and Family. We read, drink, eat, share live music, and let the discussion go where it will.

Details for July 20, 2014. RSVP here!

~ Angeline Goreau (Reconstructing Aphra: A Social Biography of Aphra Behn. 1980. 165-66.)

THE PLAY
An obscene Restoration closet drama, The Farce of Sodom, or the Quintessence of Debauchery was published in 1684. It is a political satire about the debaucherous court of England’s King Charles II and his tolerance of Catholicism which, as far as post-Restoration Protestants were concerned, was buggery.

In the fictional Kingdom of Sodom, King Bolloxinion legalizes same-sex sodomy for the preservation of his female subjects’ genitalia. General erotic madness ensues. General Buggeranthus reports that the soldiers have embraced the new authorization as it saves them on the cost of prostitutes. Women turn to “dildoes and dogs.” The Prince & Princess engage in an incestuous relationship. The Queen dies of venereal disease. And while the court physician recommends men should find their pleasure with women again, the King is determined to live out his days an enthusiastic sodomite.

We encourage attendees to familiarize themselves with the political context of Restoration England prior to the event.

TRIGGER WARNING! The Farce of Sodom is rife with foul language and obscene content. Do not attend if you are squeamish about either.

John Wilmot, 2nd Earl of Rochester

THE PLAYWRIGHT
Although publication was anonymous and authorship is still disputed, Sodom is generally attributed to John Wilmot, 2nd Earl of Rochester (1 April 1647 – 26 July 1680). Rochester was an English poet and courtier of King Charles II’s Restoration court. A rake in his poetry and his life, he committed treason in 1669 by boxing the ears of Thomas Killigrew (English dramatist and manager of one of only two licensed theatres, he was later Master of Revels) in sight of the monarch, and in 1673 he accidentally delivered an insulting diatribe to the King. He died at the age of 33 of syphilis. While contemporaries praised him as a satirist, his work was censored during the Victorian era and only began to enjoy a revival in the 1920s. He is best known for A Satyr Against Reason and Mankind.

CAST: TBA
BOLLOXIMIAN, King of Sodom
CUNTIGRATIA, His Queen
PRICKETT, Young Prince
SWIVIA, Princess
BUGGERANTHUS, General of the Army
POCKENELLO, Pimp, catamite and the King’s Favourite
BORASTUS, Buggermaster-general
PENE & TOOLY, Pimps of Honour
LADY OFFICINA, She-pimp of Honour
FUCKADILLA, Maid of Honour
CUNTICULA, Maid of Honour
CLITORIS, Maid of Honour
FLUX, Physician-in-ordinary to the King
VIRTUOSO, Dildo and Merkin maker to the Court

RSVP kindly requested!

FOOD is potluck. Please bring a dish and/or drink to share. Theme according to the play… or not!

SEATING is ample, but feel free to bring a cushion if you prefer the floor (it is carpeted).

ACCESSIBILITY
Our location has a lot of stairs to navigate (15 just to enter) and, unfortunately, no current access options to avoid them.

SCHEDULE 
4:00pm Arrivals. Mingling and food/drinks.
5:15-5:30pm Reading begins, to be followed by discussion.
10:00pm End time is a best guess. Leave when you need to; we allow the discussion to run its course.

ABSOLUTELY NO CHILDREN AT THE SODOM SALON!
Due to the adult content, we must insist that children not accompany parents to this particular Salon.

READERS
We distribute the play digitally. For the Salon, please bring your own printed copy or a device to view the file. Wifi onsite.

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