all words and photos: Blink OfAnEye
I didn’t quite know what to expect when I was asked to cover “Woman on Top: Tips about Mom, Dad, and COSMO” – a solo show written and performed by comedian Vijai Nathan and produced by SpeakeasyDC. I’d heard of SpeakeasyDC: they put on popular storytelling shows around the city, but I had never been to a show. I had never heard of Vijai, so I had no idea what this night at the H-street theater would hold. I was encouraged when I walked into the Sprenger Theatre at the Atlas to see diverse audience of at least 200 people of all ages and ethnicities.
It didn’t take me long to understand why all these people came to see the show. From start to finish, Vijai was hilarious.
She regaled us with her struggles and mishaps as a single woman on the prowl, raising critical questions like “If a guy eats out your ass, are you formally obligated to reciprocate?” and educating us on the many euphemisms for penis, as learned from historical romance novels from the 80s stolen from the local library. If you are wondering: throbbing member, bulging man-root, aching loins, and pulsating rod made the list. She especially shone at moments that were unscripted. “That’s my mom, everyone” she told the crowd when her mother arrived late. “Don’t worry, though, English is her second language… very second language, so she won’t understand most of what I say….. Golden Showers…. see….. no, reaction, so don’t worry, because I know you’ll spend the rest of the show looking at her to see her reactions.”
Vijai will performing during the Capital Fringe Festival this July, “Good Girls Don’t, But Indian Girls Do.” If it’s anything like this one, it will be worth checking out. She runs a monthly comedy show at Chief Ike’s called Fan-Freakin’-Tastic with stories, poetry, and stand-up and can be seen regularly performing and teaching storytelling classes for SpeakeasyDC. Her website is VijaiComedy.com. SpeakeasyDC’s next show will take place on June 6 and 7 at Woolly Mammoth Theatre as part of Capital Pride Week, “Don’t Ask, Do Tell: Stories about Coming Out, Coming Clean, and Just Plain Coming.” Find out more at speakeasydc.com.
