No, “Lipstick Traces” is definitely not about
make-up.
In fact, it’s about the punk revolutionary Johnny Rotten
and the aftershocks of the Sex Pistols. It’s a time-travel
play exploring the punk movement through the ages. The journey is
traced from 16th-century heretic John of Leyden (whose name is a
precursor to John Lydon, Rotten’s real name), to the
intellectuals who were catalysts in the 1968 riots in Paris, to the
present. It’s history. It’s evolution. It’s
punk.
Created and directed by Shawn Sides, and now playing at UCLA,
“Lipstick Traces” is adapted from Greil Marcus’
cult classic book bearing the same title.
Set against a plain black backdrop, the production is composed
of a melange of melted scenes held together by the interspersed
commentary from actors as well as from the self-proclaimed Dr.
Narrator.
“The show is basically a punk rock concert for your
head,” said Melanie Joseph, artistic director for the Foundry
Theater which produced the show. “If you need to work out
your head or get a few gut laughs in, this production will
definitely help you out.”
Sides conceived this production on a dare from her colleagues
and then decided to actually put her conception into action.
According to Sides, Marcus’ 500-page novel didn’t
exactly jump out as a perfect play. However, after long nights,
Marxist study sessions and group discussions, the play and its
multifaceted themes began to emerge.
Marcus’ original book recounts Johnny Rotten’s voice
and what that voice means to him. He covers history from around
1200 to the present through Rotten’s voice and describes how
important this voice was in punk history.Â
Marcus also raises the point that if punk music is so important
to numerous people of that day, why aren’t the songs
mentioned in history books or recorded as important events?
“Basically, the book is about the impulse of negation,
Johnny Rotten’s voice and where that voice emerges throughout
history,” said Kirk Lynn, who adapted the book for its
current production. “It is an expression that this voice is
important and the impulse that it conveys is significant to
recognizing the movement.”
Though the play was based on the book’s events, it takes
the events and makes them into a fast- paced production that has
everything from bedazzling lights to crazy characters, according to
Sides.
“The play had to be fast and energetic ““ like a punk
rock song,” Sides said. “Just as Marcus wrote in his
novel, there’s something about a punk rock song; whatever it
is, it has to say it very quickly and very powerfully.”
Thus, the production team for “Lipstick Traces”
decided to use all necessary prerequisites for a gnarly punk rock
concert: loud banging background music, blinding fluorescent
lights, gray clouds of smoke and, of course, the musings of Johnny
Rotten.
Quickly moving from time period to time period, the play
captures the essence of the punk rock movement with quick wit from
Dr. Narrator as well as the cast, according to Joseph. Each period,
the actors attempt to portray the evolution of the punk rock
movement by using pertinent people such as John of Leyden, Johnny
Rotten and the Sex Pistols group members, but also attempts to
enlighten audience members.
“We want audience members to walk out of the theater
reliving their punk days,” said Joseph. “Knowing the
punk rock culture and either reliving it or living it for the first
time opens your eyes to a new revolution of thought.”
Just as Marcus took the mental state of the punk rock revolution
to a different level in his novel, these artists attempt to take
the history to a visually appealing level that entices the senses
and draws the audience in, making them recognize the power of the
movement, according to Maryam Griffin, a second-year mathematics
and philosophy student.
“However, people come out of the play ““ we want them
to know that they have learned something about the punk rock
culture,” Sides said. “Hopefully, for many audience
members, the play will make them want to go get drunk and go argue
with someone around a table.”
THEATER: “Lipstick Traces” is playing at
Macgowan’s Little Theater every day through Oct. 20 (dark on
Mondays) at 8 p.m., Sundays at 7 p.m. Tickets are $15 for students
and $35 for general admission and can be purchased at the UCLA
Central Ticket Office and at all Ticketmaster outlets.