A man sits peacefully reading in the sunlight in Central Park. There enters a second man. He is a young, unkempt and undisciplined vagrant where the first is neat, ordered, well-to-do and conventional. The vagrant is a soul in torture and rebellion. He longs to communicate so fiercely that he frightens and repels his listener.…
In THE LOVER Harold Pinter leads the audience to believe that there are three characters in the play: the wife, the husband and the lover. But the lover who comes to call in the afternoons is revealed to be the husband adopting a role. He plays the lover for her: she plays the whore for him.…
Never has Jean Kerr’s wit had a keener edge or her comic sense more peaks of merriment than in this clever confection which starred Gilda Radner and Sam Waterston on Broadway as a pair whose spouses are having an affair. They counter by “inventing” an affair of their own. He, ironically, is a marriage counsellor…
THE MAIDS carries on Genet’s fixation upon the netherworld of life, showing us two maids who are sisters. They are servants, the servile dregs of society, and expendable. But Genet does not look upon them at all; rather he sees through their eyes and minds the rest of the nightmare world. Alone, the sisters take turns…
Brian is financially dependent on his wife Sheila, and he is in love with another woman. An acquaintance convinces him he would be better off if Sheila were to die and then suggests a “foolproof’ murder scheme, adding that he only wants the satisfaction of committing a perfect murder. The murder is successfully carried out…
THE LESSON takes place in the office and dining room of a small French flat. The professor, an elderly man, is expecting a young female student. The third character is the professor’s maid who is always worrying about the professor’s health. As the lesson progresses, the professor grows more and more angry with what he perceives…
As is necessary for a pretty girl with her own student apartment, April McGregor has learned to fend off wolves; although she is hard pressed to cope with Skipper Allen, a particularly persuasive graduate student who is convinced that her secret wish is to have him move in with her Thanks to a bad back,…
An underpaid worker hires himself in disguise as his own assistant to increase his income. His sweetheart falls for his phony self and he becomes his own rival. “Side splitting.” Lerner Voice. “A comedy with the accent on fun.” Beacon News. “Delightful … lighthearted, fast paced quality entertainment.” Daily Chronicle. CAST FRED DICKSON| Michael Cremer…
TABLE MANNERS is part of a trilogy under the general heading THE NORMAN CONQUESTS, the other two plays being ROUND AND ROUND THE GARDEN and LIVING TOGETHER. The plays are not consecutive, but all occur during a single week-end and each takes place in a different part of the same house. Thus we are watching events which are taking…
Bill Manhoff (1919-1974), though perhaps best known for his hit Broadway comedy THE OWL AND THEPUSSYCAT, was a longtime writer for a number of TV series (THE ODD COUPLE, SANFORD ANDSON, ALL IN THE FAMILY, LOVE AMERICAN STYLE, ROOM 222 and THE PARTRIDGEFAMILY). THE OWL AND THE PUSSYCAT opened in New York in 1964 and was such a success that…