My-Ography?

We live in a society obsessed with biography; a culture that expects an A&E special detailing the lives led by our politicians, movie stars and musicians. Biographies are breathlessly laid out before Barbara Walters on "news" specials and shown in marathon blocks on a channel devoted to the genre. Even regular folks leave their biographies open to anyone who wants to read them on Web sites like Blogspot and MySpace. The problem with the biography, though, is that it doesn't exist in a vacuum. To tell your story often involves putting other people squarely in the narrative. For example, the aforementioned Barbara Walters revealed to the world last spring that she had an affair with a married senator. The whole revelation made great copy, but in the end, I wondered about the damage done to his family. Biography, a clever comedy by Anagram Productions, explores the phenomenon of the tell-all through the story of Marion Fraude. Fraude is a small-town girl who makes it big in the art world and is working with a magazine publisher to tell her story, much to the chagrin of a former lover with political aspirations. Though this play dates back to the 1930s, the social commentary has never been more relevant. Catch Biography at Hub Theater, 2809 Canton St., as it runs Friday through August 3. For more information on showtimes and tickets, visit dallashubtheater.org.
Fridays, Saturdays, 8:15 p.m.; Sun., July 20, 2:30 p.m.; Thursdays, 7:30 p.m. Starts: July 18. Continues through Aug. 3, 2008