The Story Theatre: Pot Girls
Myah Bridgewater and Brenna DiStasio
The Story Theatre Presents POT GIRLS Review - The Feminist Play
TLDR: Pot Girls shows a specific time period of second wave feminism and is bookended by philosophical musings and call to action moving forward. A superb cast transforms into literary icons from the past to modern day women in the workplace creating these different vibes of the play.
Myah Bridgewater, Brenna DiStasio, Tamsen Glaser and Emily Marso with (back) Peter Ferneding
Celebrating Women of All Time Periods
It’s a celebratory mood in this small apartment in 1980s London. Caryl (Brenna DiStasio) has put a cassette on and is dancing around her apartment making preparations for a party. She pops hors d'oeuvres in the toaster oven and puts out chips and dip. Her “roommate” Edith (Ireon Roach) comes home and they share a lengthy kiss and a joint as they continue preparing for the party. A light haze begins to fill the room as the door buzzer goes off alerting us that the first party guest has arrived.
Making her entrance boldly and loudly is….a nun?? We puzzle quietly to ourselves with a furrowed brow. We didn’t think these two were particularly religious given what we’ve seen so far, but hey, we love an inclusive party. Trailing not far behind our first guest is none other than…Sappho! Now we’re starting to put the pieces together. One after another, more influential women (and one gay man) writers of the past enter this cozy apartment offering Caryl congratulations on her new play opening on the West End. It’s a big moment for her and she’s brought all her inspirations together tonight to eat, smoke, and be merry.
This part feels like a joyous history lesson as each figure gets a chance to slide in facts about themselves through regular party conversations and as they gently rib and joke with each other. But there’s an underlying tension as well, all these women (and one man) define their experiences differently that brings up a lot of questions about identity they need to reflect on.
Do You Really Mean *All* Women?
Though the party ends abruptly, our scene changes quickly to the rehearsal space. Now we see Caryl’s outside life as she contends with a handsy director, the pressure of putting on the first all women show at this theater, and questions about the inclusivity of her play that has been touted as representing universal women’s experiences.
Our actors switch from their historical figures to their modern day characters in the rehearsal room. We see the pressure getting to Caryl as DiStasio crumples up her copy of the script and has a tense conversation with the script assistant, Naomi (Myah Bridgewater) who is also Black and offers suggestions to include the Black woman experience as well.
But there’s also levity as the cast finds moments for tongue in cheek jokes and overacting those experiences people may have felt in the 80s. As we follow Caryl through the rest of this production process and the aftermath, the emotions feel like they're coming from a real place from the cast.
Laney Rodriguez, Myah Bridgwater, Emily Marso, Tamsen Glaser and Peter Ferending
The After Party Thoughts
Pot Girls is one of those plays where I truly did not know what was going to happen next. We start with a weed induced daydream, see second wave feminism acted out in front of us, and end with social commentary pushing how we think about inclusive feminism. We keep getting more and more meta, almost like we’re experiencing a high creative session/dream ourselves as after a scene, we’re like let’s go deeper and see what it means.
Pot Girls is a piece of work that captures this particular time period with a specific mission to bring attention to the shortcomings of second wave feminism, showing it to you unmistakably, and then also taking it one step further with a call to action as we leave the theater. Those questions dig deeper into our current understanding of feminism, intersectionality, and the experiences of Black women and their identity.
For those that are looking for a well-written, spectacularly acted, and social commentary play that balances comedy, tragedy, and questioning our daily lives, Pot Girls would be an excellent choice for you!
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
Laney Rodriguez, Emily Marso and Brenna DiStasio
When
Now through March 8, 2026
Where
The Raven Theatre
6157 N. Clark St.
Chicago, IL 60660
Runtime: 2hrs 15min, including intermission
Tickets
$20+
Tickets can be purchased by calling the box office at (773) 338-2177 or through The Story Theatre website
Photos
David Hagen
Find Allie and The After Party featured on Theatre in Chicago
Myah Bridgewater and Brenna DiStasio
CAST
Myah Bridgewater (Phillis Wheatley, Naomi, Ayanna)
Brenna DiStasio (Caryl)
Peter Ferneding (Edward Carpenter, Max, Paul Michael)
Tamsen Glaser (Sappho, Annie, Brenna)
Emily Marso (Lady Murasaki Shikibu, Mei-Lin)
Ireon Roach (Edith)
Laney Rodriguez (Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz, Christine)
Jack Bowes (Understudy)
Sierra Coachman (Understudy)
Jennifer Ledesma (Understudy)
Lizzy Mosher (Understudy)
Hannah Rule (Understudy)
CREATIVE
Paul Michael Thomson (Playwright)
Katelyn Montgomery (Scenic Design)
Racquel Postilgione (Costume Design)
Seojung Jang (Lighting Design)
Ellie Fey (Assistant Lighting Design)
Gina Montalvo (Sound Design)
Spencer Diaz Tootle (Properties Design)
Jyreika Guest (Intimacy Direction)
Stina Taylor (Technical Direction)
Eva Breneman (Dialect Coaching)
Emma Sipora Tyler (Dramaturgy)
Anastar Alvarez (Stage Manager)
Liv Morris (Assistant Stage Manager)
Shelbi Weaver (Production Manager)
Mark Brown (Master Electrician)
David Hagen (Director of Design)
Marlene Slaughter (Assistant Director)
Terry Guest and Brianna Buckley (Producers)