I forget that in my original manifesto for the book review blog I had a list that included plays. I have read A LOT of plays in my search for showcase material and monologues. Here are my thoughts on two of them:
Keely and Du by Jane Martin
With the abortion debate still a hot button issue among many, this play should be done everywhere. This 1993 winner of an American Theatre Critics Association Award for Best New Play is deeply fascinating, weird, visceral, touching, and smart. Keely is on her way to the abortion clinic when she is kidnapped by some unspecified extremist group. She wakes up chained to a bed and in the care of Du, an old retired nurse who belongs to the group and in whose care Keely is entrusted. They are going to force her to have the baby. The underlying complexities of both of the characters' lives are explored through their conversations and negotiations. The climax is thrilling and in the end there is a twist. The play raises a lot of questions, and as a reader I found myself closing the play with nothing but thoughtfulness concerning the issue. If you do this play, call me up. I want to play Keely. I will audition the shit out of this role for you.
Dying City by Christopher Shinn
Apparently I chose plays that touched on all the hot button issues. This play was well received after it's 2007 premiere (Ben Brantley called Mr. Shinn "the most provocative and probing of American playwrights today" and if you know Ben Brantley, you know that the praise is meaningful) and I wonder when more theater companies will begin to pick up this gem. The play goes back and forth between the events that occurred on two nights a year a part from one another; the night before Kelly's husband Craig leaves for Iraq, and a year later when his twin brother (played by the same actor) has come to visit. I think this one deserves a read for yourself. Side note: the original production at Lincoln Center included a stage that rotated slowly over the course of the entire show and wasn't noticeable until some time had passed.
All for now. More later!
Love,
Clellan
