Hold Please

by David Anthony Fox

When first we meet the four secretaries of Hold Please, Annie Weisman's funny and (better yet) sometimes disturbing play, they are participating in the kind of touchy-feely encounter group that lately has entered even workplace culture. Appearances can be deceptive, though: The structure may seem supportive, but what's actually going down is the systematic gathering of evidence (most of it misconstrued) that will topple a senior partner.

Welcome to corporate America as seen from the lowest level of the totem pole, and make no mistake: It's as lonely at the bottom as the top.

In fact, Hold Please takes on more than the embattled relations between executives and their assistants. The real target is those secretaries themselves -- specifically, relations between two middle-aged, more senior women (Agatha and Grace), who have made the "clerical arts" their calling, and a younger generation (Erika and Jessica) who have grander dreams.

Of course, in this world it would be asking too much for the bosses to take any interest in the professional development of their support staff. But Weisman's sadder point is that there's no sisterhood among the women either. The buttoned-up Agatha and Grace decry slipping standards in behavior and dress of their younger counterparts, while Erika and Jessica take time off from IM'ing their boyfriends and discussing their bras to complain that the older generation has no ambition.

The playwright is brave to take on such a sweeping, complex portrait of American work life, and braver still to treat it fairly: Both feminism and post-feminism are decoded with an equal measure of sympathy and condemnation.

Lest you think the play is specifically about women, let me say that Hold Please is best when revealing the bigger picture of workplace etiquette. Whether the characters are griping about the odor left behind by the "flagrant over-microwaving of popcorn," or envying a competitor company that offers its employees "unlimited free Snapple," this is office politics in all its tragicomic pettiness. For anyone who has known the martyrdom of cleaning the company fridge, Hold Please will make you laugh and cry.

At Eternal Spiral Project, Rebecca Wright has directed Hold Please for maximum comic energy. It pays off with some virtuoso moments, but we'd like to see a few complementary, quieter ones. Likewise, the four gifted actresses could find more nuances, but they're amusing and hit their marks. Clever designs by Marka Suber (scenery) and Elizabeth Garrott (costumes) feel just right, making the most of limited space and budget.

In all, another worthwhile and enjoyable contribution by Eternal Spiral, whose enterprising collective work is a positive example of female collaboration, in happy contrast to this play!

HOLD PLEASE

Through Nov. 23, Eternal Spiral Projectat 2nd Stage at the Adrienne,2030 Sansom St.,215-563-4330.