A Stiff Dick

For his 50th birthday, Stanley, an emasculated and balding nobody decides to treat himself to a little “strange”. Cerise, a sharp and seasoned escort, immediately marks him as a patsy and begins guiding him toward the transaction. Their exchange, which plays Stanley’s unease off Cerise’s practiced confidence, has the rhythm of farce — but Stanley is not what he seems. When he reveals himself, the balance of power shifts, forcing Cerise into a series of increasingly desperate pleas for mercy. What follows is comic, uncomfortable and unexpected, as Cerise reveals more than she intended before the sting lands on one final reversal.

Stanley is a sly comic role for an actor in his 50s: a drab little man who appears to be arranging a sad birthday encounter with a sex worker, only to reveal himself as something else altogether. The part gives an actor repression, deadpan unease and hidden authority — a role for someone who can make weakness look real until the trap snaps shut.

Cerise is a fast, funny role for an actress in her late 20s to early 30s: a seasoned escort who thinks she has found an easy mark, then has to improvise her way out of a jam. The part gives an actress seduction, street smarts, comic panic, and a final reversal — a role built for someone who can turn on a dime without losing humanity.