Feminism is dead. When women can vote, work, have sex and enjoy it too – what else is there to fight for?

If there weren’t a convincing response to that argument, then 30 years ago Caryl Churchill might never have sat down to write Top Girls, now a classic of post-modern theatre and currently showing under Shane Bosher’s direction at the Q Theatre in Auckland.

As an offshoot from the post-Thatcher years and barely on the cusp of entering the corporate jungle myself, I was admittedly a little skeptical about what interest the show might have for me. But I’m always game for a little mental exercise, and so having found a female accompaniment (the male counterpart having been scared into scarcity at the mere mention of ‘post-modern feminist theatre’), I settled in for the show. 2.5 hours later we emerged, and both agreed our Wednesday evening had been an altogether more entertaining experience for having gone.

Act 1 opens with a celebratory dinner for Marlene, who’s just beaten out (shock, horror!) a man to gain the head spot at female employment agency ‘Top Girls’. Her guests are an all-star selection of successful women from throughout literature, history and art. Whiskey and wine aside however, it’s the old boys’ club gone bad, as the women fall into contemplation of the skeletons piled beneath their “extraordinary achievements”.

The theme of sacrifice continues throughout the following two acts, deftly bought to life by an all-women cast. With the exception of Danielle Cormack (fantastic as penultimate 80s career girl Marlene), all actresses take two parts, quietly linking the historic struggles of the dinner party guests with those experienced by the contemporary working woman. Knotty subject matter indeed, and the play leaves you with more questions than it answers, but it’s hard not to be anything but utterly engrossed, as if you’re eavesdropping on a conversation you just can’t tune out from.

So, back to the F word – feminism. Dead? While much has changed since 1982 – ‘job prospects’ now generally meaning more than ‘personal assistant to the director’ for most women – other prejudice-revealing conversations in Top Girls are still being held today, in offices, in bathrooms, in our heads. Mind you – if this all just sounds too political to be fun, forget everything I’ve just said. All you need to know is that it’s a superbly executed, touching, and darkly funny play, and you should see it. If there is a next time, I’m taking the boy.

By Delaney MacDonald