Tracy Letts

I was uncertain about this play when I first saw it. A second viewing (the film) left me somewhat more positive. It is in the reading that I have finally come to realize the weight of this play (and I am not referring to the 3.5 hour running time; I was aware of that from the first viewing). The story of a dysfunctional family in Pawhuska, Oklahoma, sounds genuine. It is an honest story, full of ordinary everyday unhappiness and conflict. The characters are like those in a Sam Shepherd play: show more deeply flawed, relentlessly narcissistic, unable to find their way out of problems of their own making, and blaming the world at large for everything that went wrong. For the most part, the characters veer between sympathetic and down-right unlikable, much like people in real life. While this family is different from other dysfunctional families, if you came from one, you will certainly recognize the emotional torture, even if the situations are different. It is complex, with subplot on top of subplot, and in the end, as true a statement about the meaninglessness of life as any absurdist writer ever achieved - and doing it all in a realist setting. Definitely worth the investment of time. show less

There aren't technically SPOILERS following, but I will spoil the theme and tone, so be warned, and read no further. Here's what this play is NOT: One of those dramas where quirky people go through a tragedy together, but everybody heals and has a big, warm hug and laugh at the end. Yeah, this play has a few quirky people, and they definitely go through a family tragedy. There are also some funny lines and moments of levity. But sh*t gets revealed about this family, past and present, and show more then more stuff, and then more, and things to from tragic to unrelenting, to worse. This is about the disintegration of a family, character by character. And they do it to each other. I hope someday to see this staged (and I hope the filmmakers don't f- it up). show less

My goodness, did I ever enjoy getting to be a fly on the wall of the Weston family's Oklahoman home. The drama in this one does not disappoint and it has left me pondering about the ethics of incest for a few days now so there's that!

I would have liked this play better if I'd read if before "August: Osage County." The idea of religious faith and how it is passed down from parent to child, as well as the fallout when one's faith fails are themes that I enjoy exploring in fiction, and this particular work addresses these in the life of a middle-aged man from Nebraska.

"Do you ever look around? At the people around you, their habits and their things they do. The way they live, that we live. Do you ever think about the food show more we eat, and think about where the food comes from, where it goes? All the people" (20). show less