Honolulu Weekly

Good Vibrations

From its name alone, the play is attracting attention. Hysterical: A Short History of the Vibrator opens this Saturday, Sept. 21, at the cozy Earle Ernst Lab Theatre at UH-Mänoa. Cozy, however, is not a word some might associate with vibrators. Any subject with a sexual stigma is bound to have a political element to it.      Hysterical is a comic fiction about the origins of the sex toy that set the world abuzz. A physician’s wife finds a prototype in her hubby’s office, precipitating an awakening that sets her in conflict with her husband. It is with this scenario that playwright Hilary Wright couches her explorations of sexual politics and the influence of capitalism.      Director Jennifer Goodlander doesn’t let Hysterical’s ideas weigh the action down but instead breezes things along — without it getting airy or vapid. (Pictured are two cast members, Emma Palumbo and Lani Hansen.) Like its subject, this show is an instrument that, in an intimate setting such as Earle Ernst, might very well deliver an overwhelming experience.      —Robb Bonnell Earle Ernst Lab Theatre, 1770 East-West Rd., UH-Mänoa: Sat 9/21, Fri 9/27 & Sat 9/28, 10:30 p.m.; Sun 9/22, 8 p.m. $3 - $7. 956-7655.