الحالمة

by Elmer Rice (تأليف), أسما حليم (ترجمة)

Tells of a delightful young woman who quite inefficiently runs a bookstore. She is one of those charming but dreamy, over-imaginative young women whom the slightest suggestion may send off into the most extravagant daydreams. In her own life she seeks at every opportunity to escape into a romantic world of unreality. During a single day of her life, which shows the actual episodes of her existence, several successive incidents of her dreaming are amusingly dramatized."

Genres: Plays, Fiction, Drama, Theatre

201 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1946

About the author

Expressionist plays of noted American playwright Elmer Leopold Rice include The Adding Machine (1923) and Street Scene (1929).

He authored novels.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elmer_Rice

Reviews

[Martin Foroz · Rating 3 out of 5]

How much credit should we give to our imagination? How about what we consider reality? A Walter Mitty character, Georgina, in Elmer Rice’s play, highlights such questions. At any moment, she is suddenly submerged in an avalanche of daydreaming. Her elaborate daydreams stand in stark contrast with her mundane life as an apparently unsuccessful bookstore owner. Her business partner tells Georgina that they’re not cut out for business, and they should board up the place and call it a day. Does she accept or does her daydreaming prevent her from getting along with reality? The play is worth reading if you’re interested in imagination and sometimes like to get away from reality so much so that it’s not important where it is, even in boondocks.

[Joe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Georgina Allerton tries to get through another tortuously routine day, but her penchant for disappearing into wild fantasies soon complicates everything, especially her relationship to three men who reveal their potential interest in her. Starts off completely delightful, with Georgina just a love of a perfectly imperfect character, and genuinely funny fantasy scenes, but it’s ultimately a let down given that none of the three guys is good enough for her, least of all the arrogant dick she ends up with.

[Brian McCann · Rating 3 out of 5]

Much better than I anticipated. A sort of female Walter Mitty. Lots of fantasy scenes, yet the play peters out at the end.

I did learn that the Coronet Theater — where it premiered — is now the Eugene O’Neill Theater.

[Stephen Rowland · Rating 1 out of 5]

A trite and typical romantic comedy. I can't believe this was written by the same man who wrote "The Adding Machine."

[Padmini Sukumaran · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dream a little dream!

[Kristi · Rating 1 out of 5]

At its core is Georgina Allerton, a young woman whose efforts to run a bookstore are undermined severely by her tendency to drift off into Walter Mitty-like flights of fancy on a regular basis. The play's time span covers a single day of her life, during which several successive extravagant and often comic daydreams are portrayed. The Broadway production, directed by the playwright, opened on December 14, 1945 at the Coronet Theatre, where it closed exactly one year later following a run of 348 performances. The cast included Betty Field and Wendell Corey. I was unfamiliar with this play before reading it. Now I know why I have never heard of a theatre production. Disappointing fluff. Kristi & Abby Tabby

[Alexandria Bianca · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this play. It resonated me as a person in so many ways. I love the serious satire in this play. It was an easy read with so much fun things to play with.