About the Play:

Sex and Death is a collection containing four one-act plays by Diana Amsterdam. These one-acts are exercises for actors and directors to show their stuff without expending the time or money to mount a full-length play. Janet reflects on her mid-life crisis while watching an Italian movie she dragged her husband to see; Max loves women in lingerie and loves the lingerie on women; young parents of a baby, Ryan and Jill, deal separately and vociferously with their individual stresses; Jerry and Curtis try to figure out the meaning of life. The plays may be performed separately or as an evening of entertainment.

One Naked Woman and a Fully-Clothed Man is a ten-minute drama that centers on Janet and Robert, a couple who have been married long enough that they're taking each other a bit for granted. The title is metaphorical: As they're seated in a theatre, watching an Italian movie, we are treated to hear Janet's thoughts ("Robert kisses me like that ... Robert used to kiss me like that") all unbeknownst to her husband, who stares at the screen, emotionless eating popcorn. She watches what she thought was going to be a nice romance but turns out to have too much nudity and sex for her taste. She becomes obsessed with the fact that her husband's prurient interests are aroused. She is convinced that he doesn't want her, that he wishes his wife looked like the figure up there on the screen, and that the sparkle has gone out of her marriage, and by the time the movie ends on screen, her marriage is in tatters. The two launch into a discussion that should be the basis for some lively conversation between couples in the audience on their way home. (Premiered in 1989 at Studio X in Ashland, Oregon; Cast: 1 female, 1 male)

Lingerie is a short dark comedy that looks at what makes men and women tick. Sweet, innocent Sally is dating urbane Max, who is trying to turn her into a sensuous woman like his closest friend, Sabrina. He buys her scanty lingerie. Sabrina warns Sally that Max will drop her if she wears the lingerie as he will not respect a woman once she has given in. So, Sally resists. And who does Max wind up with? Sabrina – who does put it on. (Premiered in 1989 at the Irish Arts Center in Manhattan; Cast: 2 female, 1 male)

Milk is a short drama about Ryan and Jill who once lived by, and for, philosophy and poetry. Now, Ryan is an advertising copywriter and Jill is a nursing mother. Between bouts with the cretins for whom he is writing brochure copy, Ryan dreams of the carefree days when he and Jill used to live only for the joy of the moment. Now, there are bills to be paid, deadlines to be met, and a baby to be nursed. The shades of their former selves interact with their present realities, in this poignant play about what happens when dreams fade and realities are changed forever, by the necessities of milk. (Cast: 3 female, 3 male)

The End of "I" is a short dark comedy. When his motorcycle buddy dies in an accident, Jerome starts obsessing about death. "The end of I" weighs on him like an anchor dragging him into madness. Only two things can calm him: racing like the wind on his motorcycle and lying in his loving wife's arms. She is getting worried – particularly when he suggests that they visualize death together. Funny, morbid, true, this play is a favourite of college theatre departments. (Premiered in 1989 at the West Bank Cafe in Manhattan; Cast: 1 female, 2 male)

About the Playwright:

Diana Amsterdam is a New York based playwright and screenwriter. She maintains an active practice as script coach, script doctor and dramaturg. Her plays have been produced in New York, London, Berlin, Montreal, Los Angeles and many American cities and been reviewed by the New York Times and Washington Post.