AN EXTREMELY FEMINIST PLAY. OR IS IT?

Never meet a man, they say. What happens if we have to work with one? Artemis Books & The Well-Meaning Man poses the complex question of how, if at all, men should be allowed into women’s safe spaces—or if it’s unethical to exclude them. The Village Theater’s world premiere production, directed by Clara Zucker, is certainly bold but might have been more successful if it leaned into the comedy of Paul Michael Thomson‘s play. While quick-moving and funny in moments, it lacks a clear tone and struggles to convey a complex picture of feminism.

Phoebe Jacobs, Daniela Martinez, Tierra Matthews

At Artemis Books, a proudly femme-centric bookstore in Tucson, Arizona, we meet Reggie (short for Regina), a manager at this sanctuary for queer readers, radical ideas, and feminist values. But when her boss—in fear of her safety under the new administration—bails without warning, Reggie is left to run the shop—and its ethos—alongside a bewildering new hire: JJ, a straight, white, cisgender man who holds a PhD in Women and Gender Studies. His presence throws the store’s carefully cultivated vibe into chaos. What follows is part workplace satire, part magical realist rom-com, as Reggie grapples with romantic confusion, ideological unease, and a few ill-advised spells.

The play doesn’t shy away from big questions—about identity, allyship, and the insidious reach of colonial thinking, but it takes a little while to build up momentum, spending perhaps too long on exposition before JJ, the inciting incident, hits the stage. Once the action gets going, some fascinating and complicated questions about if/how men should interact with women’s safe spaces are explored, but I wish it followed through with better clarity. Depending on how you read the tone of the play, the message it’s delivering could be very different.

Kyle Roth, Phoebe Jacobs, Daniela Martinez

It finds its groove in the second act when the aforementioned questionable spellcasting has some spooky repercussions. In a hilarious series of supernatural events, copies of Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card appear on the bookstore’s shelves and Robin Thicke’s Blurred Lines blasts over the speakers, but the play abandons this horror movie-inspired format quickly. I think this sequence is the most successful because it pokes fun at the way the patriarchy pops up even in femme spaces, and I think this might be what the playwright is going for throughout, but with mixed success.

It’s difficult to get too far into this nuanced conversation without spoiling the play, but I will say, I had a lot of questions about the feminism it’s presenting before I looked closely at the playwright, Thomson. His identity is significant specifically because the play is about a man, knowledgeable about feminism, stepping into the conversation about feminism. Yet there’s a seeming assertion that men absolutely shouldn’t do that, no matter how well-intentioned they are (unless it’s saying that feminists are too mean to men, which is certainly another way it could be interpreted). It makes me wonder why Thompson would write a play about this. I suspect he is writing from a self-deprecating angle, but unfortunately, I think it’s very possible to experience this play as a satire critiquing feminism instead.

Tierra Matthews, Phoebe Jacobs

The four characters working in this bookshop seem to represent caricatures of feminists, especially Regina (Daniela Martinez), the lesbian man-hating feminist; Emerson (Phoebe Jacobs), the bi-sexual witchy crystal-loving feminist; and JJ (Kyle Roth), the straight guy who made feminism his personality. Asha (Tierra Matthews) is the most multi-dimensional character, and perhaps the only one who doesn’t neatly fit into a box. All four actors lend humanity to their characters, though Jacobs and Matthews stand out for how wisely they navigate the script and lend their characters nuance between the lines.

Katelyn Montgomery’s simple but effective set design makes smart use of Rivendell’s cozy space with a homey setting for Artemis Books. Along with prop master Averly Sheltraw, Montgomery’s stage tricks make for a surprising and delightful bit of magic in the bookstore’s brief haunting. Costume designer Maggie McGlenn also makes some strong choices, including dressing JJ in a Black Lives Matter muscle T-shirt—a hilarious choice for this character.

Kyle Roth

While I want to applaud The Village Theater for taking such a big swing with this play, I’m a little wary of recommending it to the wrong person. The message of the play is a little confusing and perhaps extreme, depending on how you interpret it. Though I do think it sparks some very interesting and useful conversations. That said, I also think this play could easily be used as fuel to further entrench an anti-feminist in their ideology. If what I’ve described sounds fun or cathartic to you, great! You’re the right audience. Maybe just don’t let the men into this space (kidding kidding).

photos by Nico Fernandez 

Artemis Books & The Well-Meaning Man
The Village Theater
Rivendell Theatre Ensemble, 5779 N. Ridge Ave.
ends on August 2, 2025
for schedule and tickets, visit The Village Theater