Megan's review
The Iceman Cometh by Eugene O'Neill
This is one of the richest plays, symbolically, of modern American theater. But like most if not all O'Neill plays, it is as interesting to read as it is to see on the stage. Lots of other plays of this era that are heavy on symbolism rely on the visual cues of the production to bring the meaning through, and therefore can seem remote and boring when reading them. (Unless you're a director perhaps, and particularly trained to read plays with an inner eye for staging them.) O'Neill really uses theater as a composite art, and he isn't afraid to get a little meta, making all kinds of references and loops and homages, using tropes of Greek theater and quoting the Bible; weaving pieces of Jungian psychology, American popular culture, and ancient myth all at once.
This play is, overall, a bit depressing, and has somewhat of a "what can you do, the world is f*cked" political edge to it - critiquing both the idealism and delusion of socialism and anarchism while at the same time...more
This play is, overall, a bit depressing, and has somewhat of a "what can you do, the world is f*cked" political edge to it - critiquing both the idealism and delusion of socialism and anarchism while at the same time...more
