Isaac, a recently returned veteran, keeps vomiting into the kitchen sink. His mother, Paige, exults in the chaotic clutter she has created from the family home in a constant dance that celebrates her liberation from domestic abuse. Isaac’s transgender brother, Max, proudly shows off a newfound masculinity and announces a plan to go live in a “radical fairy commune.” And former patriarch Arnold smiles absently in a corner, wearing a nightgown, rainbow-colored wig and garish clown makeup.
How you react to the “absurd realism” of Taylor Mac’s outrageously in-your-face “HIR,” making its regional premiere at Salt Lake Acting Company, depends entirely on how you relate to the members of this very dysfunctional American family.