Coriolanus

Coriolanus: Second Series by William Shakespeare
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

It was all right. I'd have to do a bit of research to see which plays came first, but my feeling is that he tried to write another like Julius Caesar or like Ajax by Sophocles instead of a work that stands well on its own. That being said, it was all right to read & would likely be much better to see it performed. Recommended for people who liked the movie - this is one where I'd recommend seeing the movie first. Good play, but not Shakespeare's best.

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The Would Be Gentleman (or The Shopkeeper Turned Gentleman)

The Would Be Gentleman by Molière

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This play has several similar titles depending on who the translator was. I am sure this would be hilarious to see performed. As other reviewers have said, it's a take-off on "The Emperor's New Clothes" and is wonderful. :)



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Arsenic and Old Lace

Another great, hilarious play! I had seen the movie with the same title, but had never read Joseph Kesselring's play. I was delighted that the movie is almost an actual performance of the play! I really enjoyed reading the play and am looking forward to when the movie shows up in my Netflix again!

Recommended for beginning drama readers (very madcap & I hesitate to say it.. zany) and for fans of the movie, especially. People who enjoy reading plays would not find this as high-brow as Harold Pinter or maybe Tom Stoppard's Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead, but I think it'd be tough to find one who didn't have to suppress a smile once in awhile while reading it.

The Birthday Party and The Room : Two Plays

Again with the plays! I still think that I need to read some more about Pinter's style to fully enjoy these. Of these two, I liked "The Birthday Party" better, but they were both very odd. I think of the 3 plays by Harold Pinter I've read so far, "The Lover" was the most accessible. Interesting to read, probably just as weird to see performed.

Recommended for people into modernist philosophies, neo-intellectual beatniks, and people really into the history of drama. General audiences would probably not find much appeal.

Mousetrap

The classic play by Agatha Christie lives up to its name! Great, quick, & easy to read - though I'd like to see it performed sometime too. :)

Recommended especially for people who think they dislike reading plays, but who feel guilty they don't read more of them. Also recommended for British mystery fans.

Pygmalion

Later turned into My Fair Lady by Alan J. Lerner and Frederick Loewe, this play by George Bernard Shaw is much more satisfying than the screen adaptation (I haven't seen a stage production). I think most people offended by Audrey Hepburn's Liza stooping meekly for Henry Higgins' slippers will enjoy George Bernard Shaw's original immensely. The play doesn't take any easy ways out, but it would feel false, I think if it did. Hooray!

Highly recommended for all drama lovers and anyone who saw the film version of My Fair Lady. Overall highly recommended for a broad audience from more sophisticated middle school readers to adult. :)

The Crucible

I found Arthur Miller's play very relevant to the current state of American politics (as a political statement about witch hunts, whether for terrorists or communists), but it's also great as a dramatic work aside from any potential political undertones. I was an English major, so I find those kinds of things - some may not & we may both be right!

Very highly recommended for all Americans 15-16+. Reading this play was great on my own, but would benefit from discussion also. Make your friends think and talk to them about it. ;)

The Elephant Man

This is another play (reading them is fairly quick and boosts my yearly "books read" total while being culturally with it!) - this one by Bernard Pomerance. The play is about Joseph Merrick, the Elephant Man and his interactions with high society and his caregivers. It's very philosophical, but more optimistic, I think than The Glass Menagerie was. I don't know that everyone would agree with that, though.

Overall, I liked G.M. better, but this is definitely worth your time - especially if you are interested either in drama or medicine. Recommended. :)

Glass Menagerie

This Tennessee Williams play is terrific! I really enjoyed it, even though it's sad. I think it would be enjoyed by a lot of teenagers who feel alienated from their parents or who feel overly protected by the same. Probably why it's read in so many high schools, eh? I can't wait to see a production of it! :D

Highly recommended for ages 14-15 and up. Great stuff and it's short! Might as well expand your cultural literacy with the short things at the very least!!

The Lover

I wasn't sure what to expect when I picked up this play by Harold Pinter. However, I was pleasantly surprised. Even though it was written some time ago, but still feels very contemporary as far as the plot goes. I can't really describe the plot without giving away the interesting parts of the story. It's very short (around 50 pages), so go for it! There is no graphic sexual content, though intimate relationships are implied both by the title and the course of the play. It is a little weird, but in a way that is intellectually stimulating, rather than titillating.

Recommended. Highly recommended for film buffs or those into drama.