“U.S. Drag” at Alliance Repertory

Two young women in Manhattan seek love and happiness, but they'll settle for rent money. Along the way, they volunteer for a community advocacy group called SAFE ("Stay Away From Ed") named for an elusive serial attacker terrorizing the city. (There's a hefty reward for his capture…) Their new circle of "friends" includes their ruthless, socially stunted roommate; the celebrated author of a fictional memoir; a lonely man who feels a kinship with crime victims; and a mousy "Ed survivor," reveling in her fifteen minutes of dubious fame. Everybody is looking for salvation in the arms of another in a group where no one has very much to give. And who is this "Ed" anyway? No one's ever seen his face, and everyone onstage is beginning to act eerily "Ed-like"…

Playwright Gina Gionfriddo exposes the culture of victimization and the media celebrity that surrounds it.