Plays 4: The Cryptogram / Oleanna / The Old Neighborhood

Collected Plays #4

by David Mamet

A collection of outstanding plays from one of America's greatest playwrights



Cryptogram : "Mamet's play suggests that deception is an endless spiralling process that eventually corrodes the soul. But it also harps on a theme that runs right throughout Mamet's the notion that we use words as a destructive social camouflage to lie to others and ourselves. . .And here through all the repetitions, half sentences and echoing encounter of one question with another, you feel the characters devalue experience through their use of language. As Del cries in desperation at the end, 'If we could speak the truth for one instant, then we would be free.' Mamet's point is that we are held spiritually captive by our bluster and evasions." (Michael Billington, Guardian)

Oleanna : "An exploration of male-femal conflicts which cogently demonstrates that whe free thought and dialogue are imperilled, nobody wins" (Independent)

The Old Neighborhood : "Mamet, ranked with Miller, Albee and Shepard as America's finest living playwrights, distills the raw, rank flavour of people wading down streams of consciousness. . .A play of riveting disquiet" (Evening Standard)

Genres: Plays

180 pages, Paperback

First published March 14, 2002

About the author

David Alan Mamet is an American author, essayist, playwright, screenwriter and film director. His works are known for their clever, terse, sometimes vulgar dialogue and arcane stylized phrasing, as well as for his exploration of masculinity.

As a playwright, he received Tony nominations for Glengarry Glen Ross (1984) and Speed-the-Plow (1988). As a screenwriter, he received Oscar nominations for The Verdict (1982) and Wag the Dog (1997).

Mamet's recent books include The Old Religion (1997), a novel about the lynching of Leo Frank; Five Cities of Refuge: Weekly Reflections on Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy (2004), a Torah commentary, with Rabbi Lawrence Kushner; The Wicked Son (2006), a study of Jewish self-hatred and antisemitism; and Bambi vs. Godzilla, an acerbic commentary on the movie business.

Reviews

[Jason Webster]

Very contrived and smug. I found it a struggle to read - I just heard everyone talking like William H. Macy in State and Main (which I loved). Of course, no one really talks this way which is super annoying.

[Doug]

"Oleanna" was my favorite. I read these all blind so that's all I'm going to say.

[j_ay]

Oleanna ****o
The Cryptogram ***oo
The Old Neighborhood **ooo