Selina Fillinger’s 2022 political satire POTUS: Or, Behind Every Great Dumbass Are Seven Women Trying to Keep Him Alive features the women in the president’s immediate circle cleaning up the mess he’s made of international relations. This Broadway hit, presented by UCSB and directed by Michael Bernard, shows the grind of overcoming genderism and the importance of collaboration in the face of crisis.
As performer Veda Arndt-Schreiber describes the show: “While the play satirizes the incompetence that has become normalized for many politicians,” they say, “I think it uplifts the importance of solidarity among women.”
The women in question range from Chief of Staff Harriet (Vivian Oxley), who desperately tries to maintain order, to Bernadette (Arndt-Schreiber), the president’s drug-dealing, ex-con sister. While the characters vary in personality type, they all have one thing in common: the drive to be, says performer Kayli Smith, at the top of their game in a room full of men.
“These women have worked tirelessly for the positions they’re in,” says Oxley. “They are the best of the best.” Performer Melanie Montegani calls the show a “representation of what a lot of women struggle with when entering a male dominated workforce.” Performer Jasmine Salata says, “Women battle imposter syndrome and feelings that they are not worthy of leadership positions. The ending ultimately shows that unity of women, rather than putting one another down, will win the day.”
While the president in the play isn’t a proxy for any specific historical figure, cast members have noted that the outrageousness of the farce is somewhat dulled by current political realities. “It’s quite jarring to observe that the highly exaggerated, satirical nature of farce comedy doesn’t need to work very hard to connect to the current administration,” says Montegani. “What I would think was a ‘crazy exaggeration’ four years ago is nothing special in the year 2025.” The show runs at UCSB November 14–22. Click here for tickets.
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