Berto_Tony_201307_PhD .pdf - University of Guelph

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who consume and those who work and serve” (sic) (Alexandrowicz, Production Script 1).
These classes consist of the “Nobelesse obelige” and their slaves, or “servanets” (sic). The
former are “decadent aristocrats who own the estate [,] carouse [,]” “and drink and fark
[fuck] because [they] were born for and not to deny” (1; 35). The servanets are a whollyowned
class of slaves “whom [the Nobelesse] abuse and exploit in various ways” (sic) (1).
The disparity between the classes forms the basis of the play’s narrative.
The plot involves two Nobelesse masters, Ravinia and Morley, who own three
servanets: Zinna and Rufus (who are siblings), and new arrival, Frank. The masters’ sexual
abuse of the three servanets incites the servanets to overthrow the social order. To do so,
Rufus uses the sexually attractive Frank to seduce and then divide both masters. After the
coup, Morley kills Ravinia. Zinna then reveals she is pregnant by Morley, and the two of
them strike a deal in which Morley returns to control of the estate, in exchange for Zinna
ascending to a new status as a Nobelesse master. Rufus and Frank return to suffering as
servanets and appear to acknowledge their lot is unlikely to change.
Characters
Frank is first described in the text’s opening notes as “young, very good-looking, of
uncertain sexuality and not terribly bright, but doing his best” (Alexandrowicz, Production
Script 1). Frank’s description, his “uncertain sexuality,” being “very good-looking” and
“not terribly bright,” make him useful as sexual bait in Rufus’s plans for social revolution.
These details of Frank’s character suggest the contemporary, gay-subcultural designation of
a “twink.” Some texts claim the origin of this term draws from the twinkie, a confection
known as “a tasty, cream-filled snack with no nutritional value. The phallic shape of the
‘TWINKIE’ snack cake should not escape the reader's attention” (Twink Urban). Various