2008 Woodie Awards
The triumph of Orpheus Descending
Rebecca Unger
Issue date: 3/1/07 Section: Life!
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Before seeing Orpheus Descending, I had heard from many sources that this play was considered to be one of Tennessee Williams' least successful ones. In fact, some reviewers even considered it to be a failure.
Going into it, I couldn't help but wonder why the College hadn't chosen one of his better known plays, such as Pulitzer Prize winners A Streetcar Named Desire or Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. However, after seeing this show, it became clear that even a play considered to be one of his "failures" far surpasses most playwrights' successes!
Although it was, in essence, a tragic play, it had many humorous parts as well - ranging from sexual innuendos to senior Ashley Wallace's eccentric character, Carol Cutrere, who the audience was introduced to in white face and sans shoes. However, beyond this humor, it is a complex satire of the Greek myth Orpheus, focusing on southern racism during the time of the Reconstruction.
The play takes place in a general store in a fictional southern town. Of the typical southern characters, three stand out from the crowd: Carol, Lady Torrence (Gillian Leigh Visco '07) and Val Xavier (Brian Byus '07). Carol is the daughter of a well-off family, yet her lewd behavior and wildly inappropriate makeup and dress land her in much trouble.
Lady's father was murdered by the Ku Klux Klan for selling bootleg wine to black people. At the time of the play, she manages the general store, while juggling the pain of her father's death and her cruel husband who's on his deathbed. However, it is Val, the Orpheus figure, who brings these women to life.
Like Orpheus, who played the leer, Val is a handsome young musician who finds himself stuck in this small southern town. He wants to try to lead a more proper life, free of partying, stealing and womanizing. Yet, he brings Lady's character to life. When Val and Lady speak for the first time, Val makes mention of a bird without feet.
Throughout the play, Lady finds this puzzling as she constantly compares Val to this fantastical bird, but it doesn't fit him. Yet, at the end of the play, it becomes increasingly clear that Lady is this bird, flying but unable to set foot on land.
Going into it, I couldn't help but wonder why the College hadn't chosen one of his better known plays, such as Pulitzer Prize winners A Streetcar Named Desire or Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. However, after seeing this show, it became clear that even a play considered to be one of his "failures" far surpasses most playwrights' successes!
Although it was, in essence, a tragic play, it had many humorous parts as well - ranging from sexual innuendos to senior Ashley Wallace's eccentric character, Carol Cutrere, who the audience was introduced to in white face and sans shoes. However, beyond this humor, it is a complex satire of the Greek myth Orpheus, focusing on southern racism during the time of the Reconstruction.
The play takes place in a general store in a fictional southern town. Of the typical southern characters, three stand out from the crowd: Carol, Lady Torrence (Gillian Leigh Visco '07) and Val Xavier (Brian Byus '07). Carol is the daughter of a well-off family, yet her lewd behavior and wildly inappropriate makeup and dress land her in much trouble.
Lady's father was murdered by the Ku Klux Klan for selling bootleg wine to black people. At the time of the play, she manages the general store, while juggling the pain of her father's death and her cruel husband who's on his deathbed. However, it is Val, the Orpheus figure, who brings these women to life.
Like Orpheus, who played the leer, Val is a handsome young musician who finds himself stuck in this small southern town. He wants to try to lead a more proper life, free of partying, stealing and womanizing. Yet, he brings Lady's character to life. When Val and Lady speak for the first time, Val makes mention of a bird without feet.
Throughout the play, Lady finds this puzzling as she constantly compares Val to this fantastical bird, but it doesn't fit him. Yet, at the end of the play, it becomes increasingly clear that Lady is this bird, flying but unable to set foot on land.