2006-04-21Staff Report 2 "In a modern world, how much control does the old-fashioned reality hold? How much do traditional social behaviour and beliefs influence the way people conduct their marriages? states a release on the play ""Intimate Affairs"", currently on at Theatre In The Park in Harare, Zimbabwe. The play stars a cast of six actors and actresses with infinite field experiences. ""Intimate Affairs"" is a romantic drama, seething with thrilling suspense throughout its run. It sends out occasional sex therapy allusions while maintaining a balance between modern and traditional social behaviour. It also pits scientific norms versus customary practice. Set in a medical practitioner's practice, the play reveals the fears many couples nurse before they engage counsellors to solve their problems. The play is anchored on a husband and wife couple. After being divorced in an earlier marriage, from a wife who had matched his sexual desires, Mr Muto gets married to a woman who turns out to be a flop in bed. The husband, as in customary style, demands the wife be engaged in acts that promote her physical sexual appeal. Mr and Mrs Muto experience marital challenges as the husband complains of his wife's sexual underperformance. His solution is to engage a marriage counsellor who happens to be a doctor. From here, the play meanders through a maze of highs and lows such as indulgence in drinks that stimulate intimacy, acts causing body parts to grow and induce intimacy, male counselors handling female clients, coupled with introversion among married couples, among other things. With matrimonial problems on the increase nowadays, the play offers a glimpse into issues likely at stake in many households. It features what others might term ""a taboo theme"" but one that should augur well in a society given to conservative lifestyles, mainly because modern life now demands certain freedoms and frankness for marriages and acquaintances to prosper. The drama is penned by Stephen Chifunyise and co-directed by Daves Guzha and Walter Muparutsa." 2006-04-21Staff Report 2
