Matt's review
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
by Tennessee Williams
Dude, I just saw this on Broadway with James Earl Jones, Terrence Howard (sp?), and the mom from the Cosby show. It was mind-blowingly great. James Earl Jones.... how-lee shit. The man is out of this world.
Anyway, good choice. Enjoy!
That is seriously sweet. If I had the opportunity to have my life narrated back to me as it was happening, I say screw Morgan Freeman, I'd have motherfuckin James Earl Jones (using the Darth Vader voice, of course) be my man of choice.
I read Tennessee Williams' introduction to this yesterday and found it to be remarkable for it's honest simplicity. There was a sentence that I loved so much, I thought it would be perfect to utilize at a later point in time when I'm trying to woo one of those literary agent fellas out there.
Cool!! What's the sentence? Or is it a secret? : )
No, it's not a secret! He says, "Personal lyricism is the outcry of prisoner to prisoner from the cell in solitary where each is confined for the duration of his life."
I found a link to a nytimes site that has the entire essay. Check it out, if you'd like.
http://www.nytimes.com/books/0...
Dear Stage Directions to Tennessee Williams' Cat On A Hot Tin Roof,
When I go out to a Chinese restaurant with my boyfriend, he insists that we get two separate dishes and split them. The problem is he doesn't like the entrée that I generally really want because it's too spicy. Sure, I could get them to make it mild, but why should I have to settle?
—Sharing Sharon
Dear Sharing,
(Act II begins as Act I ended with no lapse of time and the characters in the same stage positions.)
MARGARET (to Brick, animated, overdramatic):
BRICK (to Margaret, cool, detached):
MARGARET (animated, more overdramatic):
BRICK (cool, detached):
(Silence for five beats, then...)
MARGARET (animated, melodramatic):
Dear Stage Directions to Tennessee Williams' Cat On A Hot Tin Roof,
Apartment hunting can be a real drag. My roommates and I are looking to move, but one of them, let's call him Mr. J, doesn't make as much money as the rest of us. His lack of income is really limiting our search. Maybe it's time to part ways?
—Apartment Hunting in Annapolis
Dear Apartment Hunting,
(Brick, cool and detached as ever, takes his crutch and hobbles stage right to the liquor cabinet and begins fixing himself another drink. Margaret, still sobbing from their previous argument, crosses to the room's oval mirror but not before briefly glancing at her husband, a quick look that conveys a sense of confusion, certainty, sadness, happiness, anticipation, loneliness, devotion, neediness, a look that suggests she is still young, but knows her youth is fleeting, a glance so strong yet so weak that Brick takes notice and yet at the same time doesn't take notice, a look that could only be given by a women who grew up poor, but yearns to be wealthy, a brief look, the gravity of which penetrates her character's dialogue in this scene and throughout the play. Brick remains aloof. He is very handsome, and possibly a homosexual.)
Dear Stage Directions to Tennessee Williams' Cat On A Hot Tin Roof,
Because of the stock market's recent tumble, I am in a financial rut. Should I reinvest in mutual funds, or should I stay with my old stocks and wait it out?
–Financially Fazed in Florida
Dear Financially Fazed,
(Different characters enter and exit. All of them talk in excited southern accents that may only exist in my plays. Big Daddy enters. He is big and southern. He crosses upstage to his son, Brick. Big Daddy shoots everyone else on stage a look suggesting, "Get out of here. I want to talk to my son." Everyone immediately exits stage left because people are typically intimidated by a character named Big Daddy. He speaks...)
BIG DADDY (in a tone conveying that he thinks his son is a homosexual):
BRICK (in a tone knowing that his father wants to ask him if he is a homosexual):
(Curtain. End of Act II.)
hahaha. excellent summary.
Matt's review
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof by Tennessee Williams
Matt's review
rating:
Tired of only being able to read The Magic Mountain at work in 10 minute internals. As such, this book will be getting packed in the lunch box tomorrow while The Magic Mountain was brought to the bedside tonight. I haven't read Tennessee Williams since high school.
************************
I actually finished this a week ago, but haven't had a chance to change its "shelf" status until now. I'll be honest, I'm not really certain how to review this book, as it's intended to be performed by living, breathing people. I haven't seen Cat on a Hot Tin Roof performed on Broadway, nor have I seen the movie, which I believe stars a young and handsome Paul Newman. But how can one review a play as a work of literature? You follow the stage directions, you envision the characters, but despite the sheer awesomeness of the imagination, it still often pales to the interpretation and nuance real life flesh and blood can imbue into a character.
Because you're mostly left to read st...more
************************
I actually finished this a week ago, but haven't had a chance to change its "shelf" status until now. I'll be honest, I'm not really certain how to review this book, as it's intended to be performed by living, breathing people. I haven't seen Cat on a Hot Tin Roof performed on Broadway, nor have I seen the movie, which I believe stars a young and handsome Paul Newman. But how can one review a play as a work of literature? You follow the stage directions, you envision the characters, but despite the sheer awesomeness of the imagination, it still often pales to the interpretation and nuance real life flesh and blood can imbue into a character.
Because you're mostly left to read st...more
Dude, I just saw this on Broadway with James Earl Jones, Terrence Howard (sp?), and the mom from the Cosby show. It was mind-blowingly great. James Earl Jones.... how-lee shit. The man is out of this world.Anyway, good choice. Enjoy!
That is seriously sweet. If I had the opportunity to have my life narrated back to me as it was happening, I say screw Morgan Freeman, I'd have motherfuckin James Earl Jones (using the Darth Vader voice, of course) be my man of choice. I read Tennessee Williams' introduction to this yesterday and found it to be remarkable for it's honest simplicity. There was a sentence that I loved so much, I thought it would be perfect to utilize at a later point in time when I'm trying to woo one of those literary agent fellas out there.
Cool!! What's the sentence? Or is it a secret? : )
No, it's not a secret! He says, "Personal lyricism is the outcry of prisoner to prisoner from the cell in solitary where each is confined for the duration of his life."I found a link to a nytimes site that has the entire essay. Check it out, if you'd like.
http://www.nytimes.com/books/0...
Dear Stage Directions to Tennessee Williams' Cat On A Hot Tin Roof,
When I go out to a Chinese restaurant with my boyfriend, he insists that we get two separate dishes and split them. The problem is he doesn't like the entrée that I generally really want because it's too spicy. Sure, I could get them to make it mild, but why should I have to settle?
—Sharing Sharon
Dear Sharing,
(Act II begins as Act I ended with no lapse of time and the characters in the same stage positions.)
MARGARET (to Brick, animated, overdramatic):
BRICK (to Margaret, cool, detached):
MARGARET (animated, more overdramatic):
BRICK (cool, detached):
(Silence for five beats, then...)
MARGARET (animated, melodramatic):
Dear Stage Directions to Tennessee Williams' Cat On A Hot Tin Roof,
Apartment hunting can be a real drag. My roommates and I are looking to move, but one of them, let's call him Mr. J, doesn't make as much money as the rest of us. His lack of income is really limiting our search. Maybe it's time to part ways?
—Apartment Hunting in Annapolis
Dear Apartment Hunting,
(Brick, cool and detached as ever, takes his crutch and hobbles stage right to the liquor cabinet and begins fixing himself another drink. Margaret, still sobbing from their previous argument, crosses to the room's oval mirror but not before briefly glancing at her husband, a quick look that conveys a sense of confusion, certainty, sadness, happiness, anticipation, loneliness, devotion, neediness, a look that suggests she is still young, but knows her youth is fleeting, a glance so strong yet so weak that Brick takes notice and yet at the same time doesn't take notice, a look that could only be given by a women who grew up poor, but yearns to be wealthy, a brief look, the gravity of which penetrates her character's dialogue in this scene and throughout the play. Brick remains aloof. He is very handsome, and possibly a homosexual.)
Dear Stage Directions to Tennessee Williams' Cat On A Hot Tin Roof,
Because of the stock market's recent tumble, I am in a financial rut. Should I reinvest in mutual funds, or should I stay with my old stocks and wait it out?
–Financially Fazed in Florida
Dear Financially Fazed,
(Different characters enter and exit. All of them talk in excited southern accents that may only exist in my plays. Big Daddy enters. He is big and southern. He crosses upstage to his son, Brick. Big Daddy shoots everyone else on stage a look suggesting, "Get out of here. I want to talk to my son." Everyone immediately exits stage left because people are typically intimidated by a character named Big Daddy. He speaks...)
BIG DADDY (in a tone conveying that he thinks his son is a homosexual):
BRICK (in a tone knowing that his father wants to ask him if he is a homosexual):
(Curtain. End of Act II.)
hahaha. excellent summary.
