Am I unfair to think that such an exercise is ... what's a good way to put it ... there is no good way, so I'll just say what I feel: cheating? It's not even a contemporary take on "The Seagull" or "Doll's House," it's a serious piece of work parodying a modern American masterwork. I am not decrying the writer's right to write it (though I do wonder why, another topic). I just find it facile and a little bit lazy. Letting someone else's construct be the point of access. Why not write a play about two couples, that's homage without appropriating the iconography in the Albee play? "Clyborne" was certainly a creative use of Hansberry, lifting characters, re-purposing them in a new story. Maybe, say, Nick and Honey at 50 would be interesting. But the actual trajectory redone with the same names?
This is subjective. Only my opinion. I'm not putting creative handcuffs on anyone. I just don't get the effort. |
