The Play About the BabyWinner of three Pulitzer Prizes for Drama during his long and distinguished career, Edward Albee is one of America's preeminent playwrights. "The Play About the Baby" is an absurdist black comedy, reminiscent of burlesque in its high spirits and banter, that grapples with such issues as reality and the games we play to define it, the ambiguity of existence, and the agonizing bonds between parents and children. A fresh young couple-Boy and Girl-have a new baby, whom an older couple-Man and Woman-have come to steal. Why? Because, as Man says, "If you don't have the wound of a broken heart, how can you know you're alive?" Brutal loss-the loss of a child or childhood self-has been a recurring Albee theme, and Ben Brantley of the "New York Times" summed up the critical reaction to "The Play About the Baby" when he called it a "funny, harrowing dramatic fable . . . as explicit and concise a statement of what Mr. Albee believes as he is ever likely to deliver." |
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A-way Afterthought Alley Theatre Anglo-Saxon asked audience big paper blind BOY and GIRL BOY GIRL BOY Shrugs BOY WOMAN bundle burning bush chair Cheerless smile Chuckles destination EDWARD ALBEE Exits left eyes fedora finger gesture Flat fuck gesture Giggles GIRL BOY GIRL Preoccupied GIRL Re-enters GIRL TO BOY GIRL Yes golden dick guard dogs guys hand hard heart howled hurt knees knew Lady lovely breasts mean Milk-pink never old Gypsy painter penis polo player Queen of Spain quietly Re-enters from left remember Shakes her head shenanigans Sighs Silence smells fingers so-called baby someone stage left stage right stop take the baby talk teb we weave tell things time's Tiny pause told tone touch understand wangled teb Watteau where's our baby WOMAN Aha WOMAN BOY WOMAN GIRL WOMAN TO BOY WOMAN To GIRL WOMAN Yes wounds young youngsmell ΒΟΥ ΜΑΝ ΜΑΝ ΒΟΥ