The American Dream / The Sandbox and Drunk Enough to Say I Love You?

April 10th, 2008 · No Comments

My review(s) of Edward Albee’s The American Dream and The Sandbox (directed by Albee at the Cherry Lane Theatre) and Caryl Churchill’s Drunk Enough to Say I Love You? (directed by James MacDonald at the Public Theater.)

At some point in the past several decades, Edward Albee has come to fully agree with those who have been calling him brilliant for so long; as such, his direction of his own work does not even attempt to show the actors and designers in their best light. Instead, he has crafted an evening for no other reason than to exalt himself. He doesn’t want us to see the production, he wants us to see how clever he is, a vanity he would deplore in one of his characters.

Drunk Enough to Say I Love You? is Caryl Churchill yelling “Fuck you!” at the world for 45 minutes, only not nearly so exciting as that sounds. Overly long despite its modest running time, this play feels like an exercise by a graduate student, not the return of a major playwright to one of New York’s premier cultural institutions. Despite the best efforts of director James MacDonald and the virtuosity of his design team, there is just not enough here to justify the price of admission.