The Theater and Its Double
Lexi's play mirrors her friends' lives, sparking reactions.
"The Theater and Its Double" serves as the second season's sixth installment of the HBO teen drama Euphoria. Sam Levinson, the show's creator, both wrote and directed it, with its initial broadcast occurring on February 27, 2022. Its name comes from a 1938 collection of essays by the French artist Antonin Artaud, which shares the same title.
In this episode, Lexi Howard, played by Maude Apatow, stages a school production called *Our Life*. The play presents fictionalized versions of her relatives and acquaintances. As these real-life counterparts watch, their past experiences are interwoven with the onstage performances. Among the events depicted are Rue Bennett's father's funeral and the fractured friendship between Lexi's older sister Cassie and Maddy Perez.
Critical reception for the episode was universally positive. While the show's second season earned sixteen Primetime Emmy nominations overall, this episode itself did not win any specific Emmys; the awards for categories like Outstanding Picture Editing, Makeup, Cinematography, and Choreography were attributed to the season as a whole, not to this installment alone.
**Plot**
The episode centers on the performance of Lexi's play *Our Life* at East Highland High School, attended by students, parents, and faculty. It begins with Rue's father's wake, where Lexi observes Rue using drugs and recites a poem to her. Rue watches from the audience, joined by Cassie and Maddy, who are unsettled to see satirized versions of themselves, realizing the play is about them. Lexi anxiously awaits Fezco O'Neill's arrival.
Before the show, Lexi discusses the production with Fezco. She worries people will misinterpret her motives, but he encourages her to continue writing. In the present timeline, Custer arrives at Fezco's apartment, planning to record a conversation about Mouse's murder.
A flashback shows young Lexi and Cassie with their father Gus Howard, who is high and barely conscious. At Rue's father's wake, a tearful Lexi watches Rue deliver a eulogy. In the present, Custer invites Faye Valentine to relax at Fezco's, making Ashtray suspicious. Before the play, Rue ignores her girlfriend Jules.
- Series
- Euphoria
- Season
- 2
- Episode
- 6
- Air date
- February 27, 2022
- Network
- HBO
- Writer/director
- Sam Levinson
- Title reference
- 1938 essay collection by Antonin Artaud
Lore & Background
In the episode, Lexi Howard (Maude Apatow) stages a play called Our Life at her school, featuring fictionalized versions of her family and friends. As characters react to the play, moments of their past are intercut with their depictions on stage, including Rue Bennett's (Zendaya) father's wake and Lexi's sister Cassie's (Sydney Sweeney) friendship with Maddy Perez (Alexa Demie). The play opens with Rue's father's wake, where Lexi sees Rue snort drugs and reads her a poem. Cassie and Maddy are disturbed to see satirized versions of themselves on stage. The episode also includes a flashback to a young Lexi and Cassie with their father Gus Howard, who is high and barely awake. A musical number characterizes the football team as homoerotic, humiliating Nate Jacobs (Jacob Elordi), who storms out and breaks up with Cassie. The episode ends with Cassie inside the auditorium walking toward the stage.
Reader's Guide
The episode received universal critical acclaim. Out of the sixteen Primetime Emmy Award nominations received by the show for its second season, five were specifically for this episode, resulting in four wins: Outstanding Picture Editing for a Drama Series, Outstanding Makeup for a Single-Camera Series (Non-Prosthetic), Outstanding Cinematography for a Series (One Hour) for Marcell Rév, and the "Holding Out for a Hero" and Cheerleader routines won Outstanding Choreography. According to Nielsen Media Research, upon airing it was watched by 350,000 people. Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes gives the episode an approval score of 90% based on 10 critical reviews. On Metacritic, it is assigned 85 out of 100 based on four user ratings. The episode was Euphoria's submission for five of its nominations at the 74th Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards.
Did You Know?
- The episode title references the 1938 essay collection of the same name by French artist Antonin Artaud.
- Lexi's self-insert in Our Life is called "Grace", the same as Maude Apatow's character in Sam Levinson's feature film Assassination Nation (2018).
- The episode's homoerotic dance sequence is set to "Holding Out for a Hero" by Bonnie Tyler.
- The main theme to horror film Cannibal Holocaust (1980) by Riz Ortolani plays over the final moments of the episode.
More in Euphoria episodes 1-24
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