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Three Tall
Women
by Edward Albee
May 17, 2011
In Act One, a young lawyer, "C," has been sent to the home
of a client, a ninety-two-year-old woman, "A," to sort out
her finances. "A," frail, perhaps a bit senile, resists and
is of no help to "C." Along with "B," the old woman's
matronly paid companion/caretaker, "C" tries to convince "A"
that she must concentrate on the matters at hand. In "A's"
beautifully appointed bedroom, she prods, discusses and
bickers with "B" and "C," her captives. "A's" long life is
laid out for display, no holds barred. She cascades from
regal and charming to vicious and wretched as she wonders
about and remembers her life: her husband and their cold,
passionless marriage; her son and their estrangement. How
did she become this? Who is she? Finally, when recounting
her most painful memory, she suffers a stroke. In Act Two,
"A's" comatose body lies in bed as "B" and "C" observe no
changes in her condition. In a startling coup-de-theatre,
"A" enters, very much alive and quite lucid. The three women
are now the stages of "A's" life: the imperious old woman,
the regal matron and the young woman of twenty-six. Her
life, memories and reminiscences—pondered in the first
act—are now unceremoniously examined, questioned, accepted
or not, but, at last, understood.
Written by: Edward Albee
Directed by: Steve Martin
Performances: May 17, 2011, 7:30 PM
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