MMM . . . TATTOO SCREAMS OF LOVE
Even when they’re not clearly autobiographical, one-person shows are tricky. I’ve never had much appreciation for pieces whose sole function seems to be letting the artist “work through” her problems. Mmm . . . Tattoo Screams of Love isn’t strongly crafted enough to alter that opinion entirely, but it is the most absorbing self-revelatory monologue I’ve ever seen, at once fascinating and disconcerting.
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I imagine that what she really wants to do is tell her story. And with some trimming, Mmm . . . Tattoo Screams of Love could make a very solid short story; some of the detail in this monologue is exquisite. When the paramedics attempt to cut her clothes off after her fall, she resists, reluctant to do any damage to “a 25-dollar nursing bra,” a practical consideration made poignant by the suspicion that she’ll have no use for it.
