July 10 –September 2,
2007
By Jeanie Linders
Directed by Kathryn Conte
ABOUT MENOPAUSE THE MUSICAL
It all started in a tiny 76-seat perfume-shop-turned-theatre in Orlando, Florida, on March 28, 2001. On stage, four women meet at a Bloomingdale’s lingerie sale with nothing in common but a black lace bra and hot flashes, night sweats, memory loss, chocolate binges, not enough sex, too much sex, and more.
These four characters – Professional Woman, Soap Star, Earth Mother and Iowa
Housewife – are the stars of Menopause The Musical®, the wildly successful show about women and The Change that features parodies of 25 classic baby boomer hits. This 90-minute theatrical joyride is performed with a live three-piece band and features such chart-toppers as "I Heard It Thru the Grapevine, You No Longer See 39" and the disco favorite "Stayin‘ Awake!"
Inspired by a hot flash and a bottle of wine, writer-producer Jeanie Linders created the show as a festive salute to women who are on the brink of, in the middle of, or have survived The Change.
"This show has become a point of relating, a celebration of a life passage that launches women into an exciting new phase of their lives,” says Linders. “Most women know intuitively that every other woman is experiencing hot flashes or night sweats. There is always a close friend or two who can sympathize or identify with her. But when they’re sitting in a theatre full of other women, all laughing and shouting ‘That’s me on stage!' they realize that what they’re experiencing is normal. They aren’t alone, or crazy.”
So what inspired Linders to write Menopause The Musical®?
“It actually came out of my standing in front of the freezer singing the words ‘Hot Flash’ to Rod Stewart’s song ‘Hot Legs,’ recalls Linders. “I was dressed for a formal evening and ready to walk out the door when the dripping started. I have a picture of it—the flapping freezer door, a ball gown and me. Then in the summer of 1998 I went to San Francisco and saw Beach Blanket Babylon, another parody show that’s been running for over 30 years. Everyone was screaming with laughter around me, and I had this voice in my head that kept saying, ‘you could do this.’ So I went back home and did it.”
Linders believes her show continues to be popular because it’s about women, not solely about theater.
“There are more than 38 million baby boomer women in American alone who understand the embarrassment of ‘gotta go, gotta go,’ or the feeling of wanting to shake the doctor by his or her lapels and scream ‘You have to help me—I can’t sleep anymore!’ We understand the feeling of thinking we are alone with the memory loss and wrinkles and everything else that comes with aging, and love being able to share the feeling with the hundreds of women in the audience.”
With four women on stage assuming distinct characters, is there one that Linders most identifies with?
“When I was asked this question early on, I realized that I am my characters,” states Linders. “I am The Professional Woman who bought into Gloria Steinem’s ‘you can be it all’ routine in the early ‘80s, the Soap Star diva personality who cringes at the sight of the wrinkles in the mirror but still walks into the room with a ‘look at me’ attitude, the lost in the ‘60s Earth Mother who has always worn long skirts and Birkenstocks and feels very much at home at a poetry reading, and of course the nurturing Iowa Housewife. I was raised to get married and have four kids, and forgot along the way and there is a part of me that knows something is missing. The irony is that the women in the audience identify in the same way. They too have the personality traits of all of the characters, and can relate to what each one is experiencing.”
Audiences indeed do relate Menopause The Musical®, and many return time after time to share the experience with friends. Evidence of such camaraderie is realized through the many letters and emails Linders’ production company receives every week.
“I saw your show and haven’t stopped singing the songs!” wrote one audience member. “It was more than just the fantastic music parodies – the women on stage were like me, the ladies in the audience were like me. I felt I wasn’t alone.”
“I think all doctors should see this!” said one enthusiastic fan. She also stated the show “made me feel a thousand times better!”
One fan wrote, “I have a confession. I’m a Menopause The Musical® junkie. I have not gone into menopause personally, but now realize it’s just another adventure, and you have given me memories I can use to laugh when the time arrives!”
Another writes, “I’ve had the pleasure of seeing your show in Orlando three
times. And I’m going again. Even my husband’s interest was piqued when I told him about the songs. He went and agreed it was the best show!”
The show’s appeal transcends all socio-economic, cultural and age lines, says Linders.
“Whether the women are draped in pearls or plastic beads, they all laugh the same way. The show – as with menopause itself – knows no boundaries.”
Read the latest issue of 
Callboard: A Playgoers Guide
Read more about Menopause The Musical in the OC Register
