Raising Aphrodite — Kirk Curnutt

Raising Aphrodite is a comedy of parenting errors in which single father, Vance Seagrove, wakes up one morning to discover irrefutable proof that his teenage daughter has come of age. Anxious to protect Chloe from the emotional perils of growing up too fast too soon, Vance must confront the sexual hypocrisies of small-town life in Willoughby, Alabama including his own. Guiding him on his journey is a cast of strong women: his best friend and former lover, Campbell, whose bisexuality is a source of conflict with both her own overbearing father and ex-husband; his current girlfriend, Sadie, the aspiring Liz Phair-influenced songwriter whose fiery confidence Vance admires and envies; and Deb, the ex-wife whose unexpected reappearance in his daughter s life sends him spiraling into self-destructive jealousy. Central to understanding Chloe s entry into adulthood is yet another iconic female, the Aphrodite of Knidos. As the first nude in Western art, this Greek masterpiece an alabaster reproduction of which is the centerpiece of the statuary Vance is dedicated to preserving symbolizes the thin line between objectification and self-possession, between eros and the erotic. Raising Aphrodite is a funny and poignant exploration of the misadventures of manhood that celebrates the creativity of punk rock, the importance of art in a community, and the beauty of friendship between the sexes.