Welcome to Litsy!

A reoccurring #readingresolution is to read more plays. This is a late entrance to the #stage, but I just finished unpacking my theater books and wanted to show them off. Top right is the newest plays On the tbr. Top left is a portion of the Shakespeare shelf. And the bottom is the newly shelved theater books

Saw this fabulous play tonight and know it will keep me thinking. Great writing. Great acting. Fabulous all around.

What a whirlwind weekend, filled with culture! (You fancy, huh?) My book club read “The Humans” this Fall & we went to see the play in Boston today. One of the characters was played by the actress who is Leslie Knope‘s mom (from “Parks & Rec”). Pretty cool! I‘m not much of a theater-goer, & liked reading the play more than watching it, but it was neat to see the set (a 2-level apt, where action takes place simultaneously on both floors) in action!

I‘ll be honest: I totally didn‘t want to read this. My book club (which is *supposed* to be a Short Stories book club) selected a play for this month, & I was bummin‘ hard. But I ended up loving it! It‘s a realistic/humorous/sad story about an Irish Catholic family “celebrating” Thanksgiving. The message is that mundane betrayal (along with the failure to connect & communicate) is more horrific than any fanciful horror story or bizarre nightmare.

Have you ever heard of “The Peppermint Pig”?

Apparently, it‘s a ritualistic smashing of a pig made of peppermint candy, for good luck, which can be done any time between Thanksgiving & Christmas. You take turns with your family, going around the table, smashing & saying what you‘re thankful for. Part of me wants to get one & start a new Thanksgiving tradition, but part of me feels really weird (/Czernobog-y) about smashing a pig with a hammer?

Reluctantly starting my book club pick for Nov.

Interestingly, the epigraph includes 3 quotes about fear including this:

“The mask. Look at the mask!
Sand, crocodile, & fear above New York.”
-Garcia Lorca

I‘ve had recurring nightmares about crocodiles: most notably, when I was a kid & again in high school. Turns out, crocodiles mean “unlucky in love.” My parents divorced when I was 2 & my high school boyfriend was, well, a high school boy.🤷‍♀️

Is this what it's like to be organized?
#babysfirstTBRlist

I am a theatre buff and try to read a few new plays each year. This won the 2016 Tony Award for Best Play and I finally read it tonight. It takes place in real time and is meant to be performed with no breaks in one act. A family gathers together for Thanksgiving and we get to witness their familial affections, offenses, and revelations unfold over the course of one evening. It is funny and searing and real. Excellent play.