Heidi Chronicles

So on friday I saw the Hedi Chronicles at CASE's Eldred Theatre. For those of you who don't know, the Hedi Chronicles is written by a feminist who was often unsatisfied romantically because of the times she grew up in. The Hedi Chronicles follows the story of Hedi, a girl who was born in the 50's, was a teen in the 60's, in college in the 70's, and at work at a university in the 80's. The play first shows Hedi giving a lecture on women artists as a university college teacher of the 80's. Then the play transitions to the 60's where Hedi is at a dance and meets Peter. Peter is one of the main characters of the story, he is Hedi's good friend who turns out later in the story to be gay. Much to the dismay of Hedi, who thought that Peter loved her. The second character we meet is in Hedi's college days while she is working at an event. There we meet Scoop, a jew and a journalist. He and Hedi fall in love in an on and off relationship. Her friends call Scoop an asshole, mainly because he wants Hedi to choose either or. Either him or her career ambitions. After that scence happens, and Hedi chooses her career ambitions, the play chronicles the struggle between the two as they grow up longing for each other but neither one willing to compromise on their images of their future. Ultimately Hedi moves away from New York (the place where this is all happening) to become a college professor in Chicago.

The play discusses feminist issues of the time; What is a woman supposed to be? What is the definition of a woman? Who are women supposed to be as a whole? Are we supposed to be pretty and flirty, intelligent and nerdy, or a mix of both?

These questions still haunt generations of women today. Perhaps the most important question that women face today is: What is the definition of women? What is the image of a 21st century woman?

I think a 21st century woman is 1. strong in who she is (personality) 2. determined in who she wants to become (profession, job) 3. positive about her sex (doesn't have to show cleavage to win appreciation, etc.)

Once we have those three elements down then the rest will be a breeze.

We certainly have a long time until that happens.