Dates & Times

The Denver Public Library recommends these library resources to enhance your
theatre experience of POTUS Or, Behind Every Great Dumbass are Seven Women Trying to Keep Him Alive.

READ
The Good Fight by Shirley Chisholm
In 1972, Shirley Chisholm was the first black candidate trying to run for president in a Democratic Party primary. Chisholm could understand the frustrations of the women of POTUS, as she said, “When I ran for president, I met more discrimination as a woman than for being black.” Hear in her own words about her groundbreaking attempt, see if her advice on the direction of Black politics holds up, and compare her call for a bloodless revolution to the decidedly not bloodless experience in POTUS.

WATCH
Veep (Seven seasons)
In this satirical TV series, Julia Louis-Dreyfus plays Selina Meyer, the Vice President of the United States. Like POTUS, Veep is a satirical look at women and the obstacles they face in the historically male-dominated field of presidential politics.

LISTEN
Joan Jett and the Blackhearts: Greatest Hits
Selina Fillinger’s music notes for POTUS suggest songs for the BitchBeats playlist should be “aggressive classic rock or punk rock,” in keeping with the anarchically fun, farcical spirit of the play. The original Broadway production included Joan Jett’s “I Hate Myself For Loving You,” although most tunes on this greatest hits collection would be at home backing up the wackiness on stage. Other musical suggestions include Bikini Kill, Pussy Riot, Patti Smith, or Siouxsie Sioux & The Banshees.

DOWNLOAD
Both from Kanopy streaming, there are two titles that can be viewed as companions of one another. The first title is And She Could Be Next, a two-episode PBS program that was filmed during the turbulent 2018 US midterm elections. It follows several women of color, including Rashida Tlaib and Stacey Abrams, as they attempt to transform politics from the ground up. The second title, from the Stanford Executive Briefings, is Power: How to Get It, Use It, and Keep It by Jeffrey Pfeffer. Filmed in 2010, this title from a professor of Organizational Behavior at Stanford University posits that individual power comes from political skill, and—most of all—being willing and able to play the game; but what about those unwilling to “play the game”, or rewrite the rules entirely? Stream both on Kanopy, free to all Denver residents with your library card.

GO DEEPER: POTUS
Compiled by Christy Montour-Larson

A NOTE FROM SELENA FILLINGER

Selina Fillinger is an Oregon-based writer and performer. Her feminist farce, POTUS: Or, Behind Every Great Dumbass are Seven Women Trying to Keep Him Alive, garnered three Tony nominations and made Fillinger, at 28, one of the youngest female playwrights ever produced on Broadway. Fillinger was named to the 2024 Forbes 30 Under 30 list for Hollywood/Entertainment.

In 2016, the soon-to-be 45th President of the United States was heard bragging about grabbing women by their genitals. I, in turn, sat down to write a farce. I wrote the first act in two weeks. The second act took me a year. After Trump was elected and the data revealed how many white women had voted for him, what began as a screed coalesced into a contemplation on culpability: the ways in which we are complicit in our own subjugation and the subjugation of others. Many regional theatres felt that my crass play about femme rage was too provocative for their audiences, and it sat dormant for several years. But in 2022, well into Biden’s first term, POTUS premiered on Broadway.

Not long after we opened, Justice Alito’s draft opinion foretelling the end of Roe v. Wade was leaked to the press. Suddenly, I was inundated with people telling me my play was “newly relevant.” I had to fight the urge to scream in response. The erosion of bodily autonomy was neither new nor unpredictable. Countless poor women, queer people, trans people, and women of color were already facing and fighting for healthcare long before the Supreme Court ruling. Much has changed, domestically and globally, in the year since the Broadway production, but I continue to find myself in the same conversation: a political crisis ensues, a headline emerges, an election looms, and suddenly people hear an old line in a new light. “It hits differently!” they tell me, shaking their heads, as if the lines I wrote six years ago about white patriarchal governance were mere shots in the dark.

People love to say that we are living through unprecedented times. Unprecedented, perhaps—but surprising? Scientists and historians and artists have been telling us where thing might lead for a very long time. I think it’s time that we stop being surprised. We cannot keep navigating our present crises with the well-worn methods that got us here. Unprecedented times require unprecedented courage. I started working on POTUS when I was a very scared, very sad 23-year-old woman who needed to laugh. I wrote this play to give myself joy and catharsis and courage. I hope it offers you the same.

Selina Fillinger

THE ART OF FARCE

In the world of theatre, few genres have captured the hearts and minds of audiences quite like farce. With its fast-paced humor, exaggerated characters, and outrageous situations, farce has become a staple of comedic performances around the world.

The Origins of Farce
The term “farce” comes from the French word “farceur,” which means “jester” or “clown.” Farce originated in ancient Greek theatre, where it was used as a form of comic relief between the tragedies. However, it was during the Renaissance that farce began to take on its modern form, with plays featuring stock characters, physical humor, and rapid-fire dialogue.

Characteristics of Farce
At its core, farce is all about comedy. Whether it’s through physical humor, witty dialogue, or outrageous situations, farce is designed to make audiences laugh. Here are some of the key characteristics of farce:

• Exaggerated characters: Farce often features larger-than-life characters, such as bumbling fools, conniving schemers, and overbearing parents.
• Misunderstandings and mistaken identities: One of the hallmarks of farce is the use of misunderstandings and mistaken identities to create confusion and chaos.
• Physical humor: From slapstick falls to exaggerated gestures, physical humor is a key
  component of farce.
• Rapid-fire dialogue: Farce often features quick-witted characters engaged in fast-paced dialogue, with jokes and one-liners flying back and forth.
• Far-fetched situations: Farce is all about taking situations to their most absurd extremes, creating hilariously improbable scenarios that keep audiences laughing.

The Modern Farce
Despite its ancient roots, farce remains a popular theatrical genre today. From classic plays like “Noises Off” to modern films like “Bridesmaids,” farce continues to captivate audiences with its mix of humor and absurdity. In fact, farce has even evolved to reflect modern sensibilities. Many contemporary farces, like POTUS, address issues such as gender roles, sexuality, and
social class, using humor to shed light on serious topics.

SOURCE: https://www.theatrehaus.com/2023/04/the-art-of-farce/

WOMEN IN THE WHITE HOUSE

While there has yet to be a female president, women have played an integral role in shaping the White House and its history. From first ladies and hostesses to demonstrators and enslavedworkers, women have been intricately involved with the White House since its inception.

Betty Ford: Activist First Lady
Immediately after moving in, Betty Ford situated herself as a unique White House occupant. Betty was outspoken and unafraid to be herself, declaring “Okay, I’ll move to the White House, do the best I can, and if they don’t like it, they can kick me out, but they can’t make me somebody I’m not.”   Even more unusual than her self-proclaimed independence, Betty Ford often disagreed with her husband’s political positions, despite being a Republican herself.

Read more HERE

Prominent African-American Women and the White House
Although Michelle Obama was the first African-American first lady of the United States, African Americans have been integrally involved in the history of the White House from its initial construction in 1792. Notable African-American women activists such as Sojourner Truth, Rosa Parks, and Maya Angelou, have affected the national trajectory, pushing the country toward
greater collective progress.

Read More HERE

Picketing the White House: The Suffragist Movement
The national struggle for women’s suffrage mobilized on March 3, 1913, the day before Woodrow Wilson’s inauguration in Washington, D.C. The National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA), in collaboration with activists Alice Paul and Lucy Burns, organized a suffrage parade down Pennsylvania Avenue. Over 5,000 women marched for suffrage but their peaceful procession was disrupted by a “surging mass of humanity that completely defied the Washington police.”

Read more HERE

JOB DESCRIPTIONS: WHO’S WHO IN THE WHITE HOUSE

White House Chief of Staff
The chief of staff position is enormously influential and involves supervising staff, controlling access to the President, and coordinating with other White House offices such as the Council of Economic Advisors, the national security staff, and the Vice President. The job was created by President Franklin D. Roosevelt during his second administration in 1939.  None of the 31 people to hold this position have been women.

White House Press Secretary
The press secretary is the spokesperson for the president and is responsible for relations with the media. The press secretary typically holds briefings with the White House press corps. Those holding the job in the Trump administration such as Sean Spicer and Sarah Huckabee Sanders became well known for their handling of the president’s communications and the media. In 1994, Dee-Dee Myers was first woman to hold the position. Karine Jean-Pierre is the current press secretary. She is the first black person and the first openly LGBT person to serve in the position.

President’s Personal Secretary
The job of personal secretary to the president is one of the oldest in the White House, and the first to hold the position were family members such as the sons of President Martin Van Buren and President Millard Fillmore. The job requires coordinating calls and visitors, overseeing appointments, and traveling with the president. The character of Mrs. Landingham, secretary to fictional President Josiah Bartlet, was a sentimental favorite on television “The West Wing.” Since Missy LeHand, the personal secretary for FDR, all people who have held the position have been women.

White House Journalist
Hundreds of journalists cover the White House on a daily basis. The White House press corps is the group of journalists, correspondents, and members of the media usually assigned to the White House to cover the president of the United States, White House events, and news briefings. Its offices are located in the West Wing. The pool system evolved to allow a limited number of people to represent the full press corps. On campus at the White House, that’s typically a group of 20 correspondents from wire services, print outlets, TV and radio, along with photojournalists and sound operators. Helen Thomas was the first female member of the White House Press Corps.

The First Lady
The spouse of the President is not elected to serve and yet, public service is inherent to the role. First Ladies were often the most famous women in America, and were able to influence, or at least were perceived to be able to influence, the President. First Ladies sponsored national and international causes such as environmentalism, volunteerism, women’s rights, treatment for drug dependency, healthcare, literacy, healthy eating and exercise. After President Wilson suffered a series of strokes, and for all intents and purposes, his wife, Edith was fulfilling the role of president in her ill husband’s absence. She is considered by some to have been the first unofficial woman president.

The President’s Sibling
Every aspect of the American Presidency comes under intense scrutiny, but few parts of a president’s life contain as many amusing, slightly sordid anecdotes as their sibling’; behavior. Richard Nixon ordered wiretaps on his brother's phone. Lyndon B. Johnson supposedly ordered the Secret Service to keep his brother as a virtual White House prisoner, to reel in his drunken cavorting. George W. Bush’s younger brother Neil was the director of Silverado Savings and Loan, a Colorado bank that collapsed in 1988 at a cost to taxpayers of $1 billion. Bill Clinton half-brother Roger’s Secret Service Code was “Headache”. Truly the standard by which all other presidential sibling’s antics are judged, Billy Carter burst onto the national scene as the boisterous, hard-drinking counterpoint to his pious, reserved brother Jimmy.

The President’s Dalliance
From Thomas Jefferson to John F. Kennedy to Bill Clinton,  the list of womanizing presidents is lengthy. Throughout most of our country’s history, presidential transgressions were known about by some but not talked about by many and they were well hidden from the majority of the public. Grover Cleveland fathered a child out of wedlock before his first term as president in the 1880s. FDR had a longstanding relationship with his wife’s social secretary. Warren Harding, Dwight D. Eisenhower, Lyndon B. Johnson and George H.W. Bush all had affairs, either confirmed or rumored. It’s been widely reported that while the Jaqueline Kennedy was giving a French reporter a tour of the presidential home, she passed by one of the secretaries’ desks and said in French: “This is the girl who supposedly is sleeping with my husband.”

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

1. What do you think of the title? If you could give the play a new title, what would would it be?
2. There are many films, television series and plays that look at life behind the scenes at the White House. How does seeing this world through the lens of women inform your understanding?
3. A farce often uses elements of absurdity, ridiculous situations, physical humor, rude or lewd jokes, and/or stereotypical characters. Where do you see elements of farce in POTUS?
4. Which of the characters could you relate to the most?  Did your feelings about the characters ever shift and change? Why? or Why not?
5. What is your answer to the question often posed in the play: “Why isn’t SHE president?” Do you think the United States is ready for a female President? Why or why not?
6. The play starts with a four-lettered word. How did it make you feel? Did your opinion change about the word by the end of the play?
7. How did you feel the set, lights, costumes and sound added to your experience of the play?
8. What song is a must on your Bitch Beats play list? (A song that empowers you and gives you confidence to face any challenge)
9. YOUR GREAT QUESTION HERE!

Where can I park? 

We offer parking either adjacent to the building, or directly across the street in the Zing Credit Union parking lot. Street parking is available after 6pm and all day on Sunday. Please make sure you have a parking pass for the season.

Where can I get a Parking Pass?

2024-2025 Parking Pass

What are the content advisories for this show?

Content Advisory for POTUS: Curious offers a public advisory about any stage effect of potential concern to patrons’ health, such as strobe lights, theatrical fog or smoking:

This production of POTUS contains simulated smoking

Curious also offers voluntary advisories about subject matter.  If you would like to read the content advisory for POTUS, click the “Details” arrow below.

In Media

• Opening Weekend Audiences Review Potus

  by Emily Whalen

  I think this is one of the funniest shows I've ever seen

• ‘POTUS’ a strong, very funny start to the season for Curious Theatre

  by Janet Walker

  Curious Theatre Artistic Director Jada Suzanne Dixon has worked her magic once again in the director’s chair for Selina Fillinger’s farce POTUS: Or Behind Every Great Dumbass Are Seven Women Trying to Keep Him Alive. The first show of Curious Theatre’s 27th season, it’s got plenty of laughs with fantastic comedic timing and slapstick humor surrounding a public relations disaster for the President of the United States (POTUS).

• Keeping POTUS alive isn’t as easy as it sounds in Curious Theatre’s season 27 opener | Theater review

  by Lisa Kennedy

  “POTUS is supersonic from its opening salvo. The repartee is fleet, fierce, and dang amusing.”