When war looms on the horizon, those most threatened by it may exercise more caution or adjust their activities, but they don’t stop living. They still must eat, drink, laugh, love – do all that is required to sustain life and even to pursue happiness. While it may sound bizarre, this simple fact rings true not just for ordinary citizens but for world leaders as well.
Playwright Joel Gross captures the poignancy of that startlingly simple fact in his historic play, The Color of Flesh, which gives a fictional account of the friendship between two great women, Marie Antoinette and Elisabeth Louise Vigee Le Brun. Set in 1774 to 1793, the play accurately chronicles historic events while reminding audiences that life goes on amid the strife, even for queens and noblemen.