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Title: Topdog/Underdog by Suzan-Lori Parks ISBN: 1-55936-201-4 Publisher: Theatre Communications Group Pub. Date: 04 February, 2002 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $12.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 2.93 (15 reviews)
Rating: 3
Summary: Lessons re-learned.
Comment: Suzan-Lori Parks' Pulitzer Prize winning play, Topdog Underdog, shows the strength of Parks' ability to write convincing dialogue, to develop memorable characters and in the process to create something of a meaningful nature. Certainly this two-man play contains black male stereotypes that are uncomfortable to deal with, however this seems to be the point. While the reader hopes that Lincoln and Booth are caricatures, or at the very least are only representative of an extinct past, the fact is these two men could easily exist in modern day society, and probably do. Parks adds a large dose of irony to their lives: their names, their family, their occupations (or lack of), their girlfriends (or lack of), that gives the play a dark comedy feel.
Beyond the immediate action, Parks has managed to take the reader further, creating a symbolic and meaningful statement in a worldly sense. It is interesting that because this play is written by a black woman it is considered to be a statement on black society. The work, when read and reread, takes on multifaceted meanings in the world of the reader, of any color, and while the surface level of introspection seems to hint at the stereotypical perpetuation of black men making bad choices and keeping themselves in the fringes of society, these two "brothers" truly represent "everyman," who battle with each other in a continued "sibling rivalry," attempting to distance themselves from their past, maintain control over their future and to control their own and each other's lives. Literature, as reflection of life, has shown us the error of our ways time and time again and Parks reminds us that human nature is inescapable and that we are our worst enemy.
(Note: This review is based on reading the play. I have not seen the play performed)
Rating: 1
Summary: I feel moor stoopid fo redin' dis play
Comment: I'll make this quick. Saw it. Read it. Hated it. This was required reading for my dramatic theory class last semester and bonus points for having seen it. It was very tense and exhausting in the beginning. More tense and exhausting towards the middle and by the end I was ready to yell out "shoot the Son of a #$%^& already and end this so I can so home and do something productive." In 10 years when people are considering what plays to revive from the past this play will have been long forgotten save for the fact that it was written by an African american writer, which is all fine and great but is not solid ground within itself to merit te rave reviews it has recieved from certain members of the press. All in all I suggest NOT seeing this play or reading it if you value your sanity. It is extreamly mindless and boring.
Rating: 2
Summary: Ehhhh.... why bother?
Comment: To avoid repeat, I will avoid giving a recap of the work itself. I did see the play in L.A. not too long ago and really I wasn't that impressed. Maybe it's because I am cynical and hate most modern realism, or maybe it is just that this isn't a very well wriiten/produced piece of work. I didn't care about the "complex" and "controversial" relationship the brothers' had. I didn't care about the "hip" rap-like use of rhythm and urban language, probably because rap is lame anyway, and so are cheesy gimmicks to sell a play. Oh the horror! He hates rap! He hates this play! "But it makes us appreciate that we are not those people up on stage." Alot of plays and movies do that, but that doesn't merit making them a huge literary hit. I didn't care when Lincoln was shot by Booth...oooh that is such a deep and meaningful use of symbolism and metaphor. Oh these poor people are caught in a vicious cycle of self [decline], poverty and violence that is out of their feeble control! Thank God I am not like them. Thank God I'm not poor! Thank God I'm not stupid! Thank God I'm not Black! Or whatever else people need to be reminded of that they are sheltered from in this world. I'd rather open my eyes and look around at the misery of the world with a sense of hope and lust for life and feeling of connectiveness to the world rather than get off on a play because the characters are so pathetic that they make me feel more numb towards everyone by making me feel better about myself. (...)
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Title: The America Play: And Other Works by Suzan-Lori Parks ISBN: 1559360925 Publisher: Theatre Communications Group Pub. Date: December, 1995 List Price(USD): $14.95 |
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Title: Proof : A Play by David Auburn ISBN: 0571199976 Publisher: Faber & Faber Pub. Date: 05 March, 2001 List Price(USD): $13.00 |
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Title: Venus: A Play by Suzan-Lori Parks ISBN: 1559361352 Publisher: Theatre Communications Group Pub. Date: September, 1997 List Price(USD): $12.95 |
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Title: Anna in the Tropics by Nilo Cruz ISBN: 1559362324 Publisher: Theatre Communications Group Pub. Date: 01 September, 2003 List Price(USD): $12.95 |
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Title: Getting Mother's Body : A Novel by Suzan-Lori Parks ISBN: 1400060222 Publisher: Random House Pub. Date: 06 May, 2003 List Price(USD): $23.95 |
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