None of us can help the things life has done to us. They’re done before you realize it, and once they’re done they make you do other things until at last everything comes between you and what you’d like to be, and you’ve lost your true self forever.
The play takes place on a single day in August 1912. The setting is Monte Cristo Cottage, the seaside home of the Tyrones in Connecticut. The four main characters are the semi-autobiographical representations of O’Neill, his older brother, and their parents.
The play portrays a family struggling to grapple with the realities and consequences of each member’s failings. The parents and two sons blame and resent each other for various reasons; bitterness and jealousy serve as proxies for ultimately failed attempts at tenderness and compassion. The family’s enduring emotional and psychological stress is fueled by their shared self-analysis, combined with articulate honesty. The story deals with addiction, unfulfilled dreams, moral flaws, and the struggle of family relationships.
• Performances are Thursday – Sunday February 12 – 23.
• Thursday through Saturday performances begin at 7:30pm.
• Sunday performances are 2:00pm matinees.
Thursdays are Name-Your Price Nights
There will be an audience talk-back on Saturday, February 22 after the performance.