DAN'S PAPERS, March 14, 2008 Page 49 www.danshamptons.com
Edward Albee For a man who has spent over a half a century writing dialogue, Edward Albee is rather economical with his words. We chatted last week about his upcoming plays The American Dream and The Sandbox, which are being revived at the Cherry Lane Theater this month. “A lot of my first plays were done at the Cherry Lane and that’s a theater I enjoy working in,” he said. In honor of his 80th birthday, Cherry Lane offered the playwright the opportunity to direct these two connected plays. After finishing his debut play Zoo Story, and The Death of Bessie Smith, Albee began work on The American Dream. The one act play is a bizarre dark comedy where the themes of a Greek tragedy meet the superficial citizens of American society. The dysfunctional, self-involved family members – Mommy, Daddy and Grandma – are at each other’s throats. As the play opens, Mommy’s rambling about a “beige” hat is forced upon Daddy, who sits as they wait for someone to arrive and fix an unknown (to the audience) problem. Grandma, who suffers from a compulsion to beautifully wrap boxes (a metaphor for superficiality) battles against her daughter. They’re ugly people; petty and shallow. Their language is dismissive and their emphasis on getting satisfaction forces one to wonder if they will ever be satiated. The play takes a turn when Mrs. Barker arrives at their door. She isn’t exactly sure why she’s there, and neither Mommy nor Daddy seem too eager to let her in on the secret. The audience, too, is completely in the dark until Grandma, in a roundabout way, explains everything – but I won’t.
TAKE
In the middle of writing The American Dream in 1959, Albee was commissioned to write a 15minute play for the Spoleto Festival in Italy. He took Mommy, Daddy, and Grandma (the characters from The American Dream) and brought them to the beach for The Sandbox. The short play reinforces Mommy and Daddy’s lack of appreciation for humanity. They place Grandma in a sandbox overlooking the ocean, order musicians to begin playing, and then wait for her demise at the hands of the Angel of Death. In a Paris Review interview at Albee’s Montauk home in 1966 he said, “With the possible exception of the little play The Sandbox, which takes thirteen minutes to perform, I don’t think anything I’ve done has worked out to perfection.” I recently asked him why he felt it was perfect and his reason was simple, “If you write a play that’s thirteen to fifteen minutes long, you don’t have many chances to make a mistake. If I’d gone on for another five minutes I probably would have made a mistake somewhere.” The American Dream has been called Albee’s first dip into the Theater of the Absurd. During its opening run in 1961 critics attacked it for its surreal nature and insincerity in dealing with severe subject matter. This time around, the play might not have the same effect as it had originally. This is by no fault of the playwright but of society. Due to their desensitized nature, a younger audience will not be so quick to shut down after the horror is revealed. Instead,
A HIKE WITH
KEN KINDLER
Manorville Hills In the last article, readers were left 1.7 miles into the Manorville Hills wild lands, 100 yards south of the L.I.E. I described the road noise and ankle twisting ravines caused by people riding dirt bikes illegally on the Paumanok Path (PP). I didn’t mention the spider web of trails cut by these off-roadvehicles and the white dots that some unsanctioned volunteer applied liberally to many trees creating visual pollution while marking the hiker’s way through this network of trails. This damage southwest of Exit 71 is continuing to worsen, and is extending eastward. Enough said about damage; let’s look at this area’s awesome beauty. In the few places where the PP is bypassed by the off-road vehicles, sedges and grasses or a soft carpet of leaves and pine needles cover the trail’s tread. After paralleling Route 495, the trail takes us south onto a wide, straight, woods road. A quick left and then right turn take you on a loop, which climbs up onto a ridge, and down into a deep kettlehole. After this loop, a right turn takes you onto another wide woods road. Another right leads you past “Little Knob” a kettle to your left. As you walk this trail in the winter, look for large erratics and perched kettle ponds through the oak trees and tall pine. A right turn takes you on a straight, wide southrunning boundary road. After traveling this boundary road, the trail turns left, onto a narrower path around the ridge of a precipitously deep kettlehole to the left. Of note are the multiple fox dens dug into the ravines caused by dirt bikes. If you refer to Larry Paul’s Pine Barrens Map (LIGTC 631 360-0753) you will see where several side trails lead you to some expansive views. Climbing 240’ up onto “Doubletop”,
they will be able to listen and understand Albee’s still-relevant critique of the “American scene,” his “attack on the substitution of artificial for real values in our society, a condemnation of complacency, cruelty, emasculation, and vacuity.” The same argument can be made for The Sandbox, after all, according to Albee “they’re two separate pieces about the same subjects, basically.” This is an incredible occasion to see both plays performed in a single night by a stellar cast, hand picked by the playwright/director. When the houselights go down and the action begins on stage, take a moment to listen to Albee’s mastery of language, his ability to create characters through nothing more than words. It is a stunning example of why Edward Albee is considered American’s greatest living playwright. – Christian McLean Several interesting events surround the play. On March 18 and April 8, audiences are invited to an intimate Q&A with the three-time Pulitzer Prize winning playwright after the show. The other event is the Opening Night Celebration, following the March 25 performance, where audience members can rub elbows with the cast, playwright and others for $300 a person. Previews for The American Dream and The Sandbox began March 11. The play opens March 25 and closes April 19. For tickets and show information visit www.cherrylanetheatre.org or call (212) 2396200.
the Path now travels though a mature oak/pine wood. The trail ascends these two steep hills one right after the other, the view from one ridge offers rolling hills running off into the distance, the other, the ocean, far to the south. The trail then drops down, runs along Toppings Path, and crosses the wide dirt road. A short distance after crossing Toppings Path, take an immediate left. This is the midpoint of the hike. The 5.5 miles we traveled since entering the woods by Halsey Manor Road, were on County parkland. The land we are now on is managed by the DEC. Note the signs “State Land, DEC, Access by Permit Only.” DEC Region 1, asks that you contact them for a free 3-year permit; (631-444-0753). They are not discouraging use; but encouraging communication. The trail now leads you from the ridge of a 140’ “Deep Hollow” to the 300’ summit of “High Hill,” then
to the panoramic view from “Burnt Hill.” A right onto a wide woods road and a left off of it, and you find a perched kettle pond well above sea level; a blanket of fern surrounds this area in “Hunter’s Garden.” In the spring, the sound of many peeping frogs suggests the presence of other nearby ponds. Walking from knob to kettle, pass the cyclone fence of the Water Authority tank tower. Soon, an ancient yet still effective Eagle Scout step-project leads you in and out of a kettlehole. Then, pass through a post and rail kissing gate erected many years ago. Turn right onto a section of the PP that shares its corridor with a blue-blazed loop trail. Travel through beautiful wetlands and then with a left turn ascend to the summit of Bald Hill with its view of bay and sound to the north. After following the trail down the LIGTC step project, the PP heads straight ahead, across a woods access road, while the blue loop trail turns right. The PP runs parallel to CR 51, and then crosses it. Almost immediately, turn right onto the yellow trail that takes you to SCC parking field 1. Directions: Suffolk County Community College, Riverhead, Parking Field #1 (closed Sundays). From Sunrise Hwy. exit 61, travel north on C.R. 51 (Moriches Riverhead Rd.). Turn right onto SpeonkRiverhead Rd, and then right into the campus. Make the first left, and then the first right into Parking Field #1. Park in green visitor’s spaces to the left of the kiosk. The access trail is behind the kiosk. Follow the yellow-blazed trail to the Paumanok Path. The triple yellow blazes mark the end of the access trail. Turn right, and you will travel in an easterly direction, through the Sarnoff State Preserve; or turn left at the trail junction and follow the Paumanok Path across C.R. 51, to Peconic Hills County Park. To find more walks on Long Island visit litlc.org