Man from Nebraska

Last updated
Man From Nebraska
Written by Tracy Letts
Date premieredNovember 20, 2003 (2003-11-20)
Place premiered Steppenwolf Theatre Company
SeriesEnglish

Man From Nebraska is a play by American playwright Tracy Letts, which premiered in 2003 in Chicago. Man From Nebraska is about a man's loss of faith and his journey to regain it.

Contents

Productions

The play had its world premiere at Steppenwolf Theatre Company in Chicago, Illinois on November 20, 2003. Directed by Anna D. Shapiro, the cast featured Rick Snyder (Ken), Rondi Reed (Nancy) and Michael Shannon (Harry Brown). [1] The play ran at the South Coast Repertory Theatre, Costa Mesa, California in March 2006, starring Brian Kerwin and Kathy Baker and directed by William Friedkin. [2] [3]

The play was a 2004 Pulitzer Prize for Drama finalist. [2] [4]

The play premiered Off-Broadway at the Second Stage Theatre, marking its New York debut, starting January 26, 2017 in previews, officially on February 15, 2017. The cast features Reed Birney (Ken), Nana Mensah (Tamyra), Max Gordon Moore (Harry Brown), Annette O'Toole (Nancy Carpenter), Kathleen Peirce (Cammie Carpenter), William Ragsdale (Reverend Todd) and Heidi Armbruster (Pat). The production is directed by David Cromer. [5] [6] The play has had its run extended by 2 weeks, to March 26. [7]

Synopsis

Ken Carpenter, previously a devoted Baptist, suddenly finds that he no longer believes in God. Ken's wife, Nancy, is shocked and uncomfortable with Ken's sudden loss of faith and initiates a meeting between Ken and their pastor. During his discussion with Ken, the Reverend learns that Ken's life is going fairly well, except for his mother's declining mental and physical health, and he hasn't taken a vacation in decades. The Reverend suggests that Ken should get out of Lincoln, and after some coaxing, Ken accepts the idea of going on a vacation by himself.

While travelling to London the woman seated next to him, Pat, asks about Ken's marriage. She explains to Ken that she is divorced, but that “I get laid whenever I want”. She then describes how she caught her ex-husband in the act of cheating on her. In spite of his apparent lack of interest, Pat mentions that she might stop by Ken's hotel some time to see him.

In London, Ken meets a woman named Tamyra, who is the bartender at his hotel. They talk and become fairly well acquainted with one another. She also manages to get Ken to drink some alcohol, although he previously didn't drink.

Act two begins with Ken in the bar talking with Tamyra, when Pat walks into the bar. Later, Ken and Pat are at her place, kissing and moving towards her bed. After she gets him to the bed and sets up a pair of handcuffs, he starts having second thoughts, and tries to get up. Pat continues to try to seduce him. She then tells him he needs to tie her down, and take control of her with leather straps. He is incredibly reluctant, and again tries to leave. By the end of the scene it is suggested that Pat gets what she wants. Pat and Ken never make contact again.

While Ken is in London, Nancy remains at home in Nebraska. Ken's daughter, Ashley, is extremely angry at her father and tells Nancy that if her husband ran off, she would have divorced him instantly. Although she continues to be shocked and hurt, Nancy explains that she will try to work things out with Ken when he returns.

In London, Ken continues his acquaintance with Tamyra and her flatmate, Harry. Harry and Ken get off to a rocky start, but the two work out their differences and Ken begins taking sculpture lessons from Harry. Both begin work on sculptures of Tamyra, who poses as their model.

After Ken learns from his daughter, Ashley, that his mother has died, Ken finds himself at Harry and Tamyra's flat, urgently wishing to speak with Tamyra. Harry informs Ken that she is out of town with a friend. Ken explains that his mother has died, and doesn't know what to do, or where to go. Harry suggests that they work on their sculptures.

Ken makes an attempt at working on his sculpture, but finds himself smashing it into a new form, twisting it and making it entirely different than it was before. Ken quickly finishes what he was doing, and gives Harry a nod as he grabs his coat, and leaves.

Back in Nebraska for his mother's funeral, Ken speaks with Ashley, who is incredibly displeased with her father. She tells him that she and her husband both think he is going to go to hell. Nancy then comes over to him, hesitantly. She is confused about how to act, and how to feel. She is conflicted with joy to see her husband after many weeks, but also irate that he has been gone for so long, and not spoken to her once.

Ken explains to Nancy that he has found his love and faith in God once again, and tries to persuade her that he is better and wants to be with her again. With reluctance, she finally accepts his hand as they walk off stage. [8]

Critical reception

Reviews were mixed. The TheatreMania reviewer wrote: "Letts has created two very intriguing characters in Ken and Nancy, but though he has provided a believable shock to their complacency, his follow-through is a letdown." The Variety reviewer noted "[Letts] succeeds quite well at expressing the empty feelings of a man experiencing a crisis of faith, but is far less successful at finding drama or meaning — or just raw, abstract emotional power — in his search to fill this emptiness." [2] [9] [3]

The Chicago Tribune reviewer noted, in a review of a local Chicago production in 2011 that the play is "... a bridge between the violent working-class gothic antics of Killer Joe and Bug and the epic angst-with-verbal-fireworks of the now-legendary "August: Osage County." Man from Nebraska suggests that being lost and uncertain is our destiny. The best you can hope for is another person groping their way in the dark beside you." [10]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ken Barlow</span> Fictional character from Coronation Street

Kenneth "Ken" Barlow is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera Coronation Street, played by William Roache. He was created by Tony Warren as one of Coronation Street's original characters and December 2020 marked Ken's 60th anniversary onscreen. He debuted in the soap's first episode on 9 December 1960. Having appeared in the role continuously since that date, Roache is the longest-serving actor in a televised soap opera, and was honoured at the 2010 Guinness World Records ceremony for the achievement, having surpassed actor Don Hastings from the American soap opera As the World Turns, who previously held this title. Roache stated in 2010 that he had no plans to leave the role and would remain in Coronation Street for as long as the producers would have him. In November 2020, Roache was again presented with the Guinness World Record for the longest-serving TV soap star in the world for his six decades in Coronation Street.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Deirdre Barlow</span> Fictional character from the British soap opera Coronation Street

Deirdre Barlow is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera Coronation Street, played by Anne Kirkbride. She made her first screen appearance during the episode broadcast on 20 November 1972. Her final appearance was on 8 October 2014.

The Iceman Cometh is a play written by American playwright Eugene O'Neill in 1939. First published in 1946, the play premiered on Broadway at the Martin Beck Theatre on October 9, 1946, directed by Eddie Dowling, where it ran for 136 performances before closing on March 15, 1947. It has subsequently been adapted for the screen multiple times. The work tells the story of a number of alcoholic dead-enders who live together in a flop house above a saloon and what happens to them when the most outwardly "successful" of them embraces sobriety.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tracy Barlow</span> Fictional character from Coronation Street

Tracy McDonald is a fictional character and a main antagonist from the British ITV soap opera Coronation Street. She was born on-screen during the episode broadcast on 24 January 1977. She was played by Christabel Finch until 21 November 1983. Holly Chamarette played the role from 8 July 1985 until 23 March 1988. Dawn Acton played the role from 12 December 1988 to 10 July 1995. Acton reprised the role for two short stints in November 1996 and December 1997. She reprised the role once again on 14 March 1999 and made her final appearance as Tracy on 10 October 1999. Kate Ford took over the role from 25 December 2002 to 8 April 2007. Ford reprised the role for a brief stint from late May to early June 2010, returning full-time from 24 December 2010. In April 2024, Ford took a break from the show and returned on 16 August 2024.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ashley Peacock</span> Fictional character

Ashley Sibelius Peacock is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera Coronation Street. Portrayed by Steven Arnold, the character first appeared on screen during the episode airing on 1 February 1995. Ashley was a victim of the tram crash and died as part of the show's 50th-anniversary episode in December 2010.

<i>The Mystery Play</i>

The Mystery Play is the title of a graphic novel written by Grant Morrison and illustrated by Jon J. Muth, released as a hardcover by DC Comics Vertigo imprint in 1994.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Skye Chandler</span> Soap opera character

Skye Chandler is a fictional character from the ABC soap operas All My Children, One Life to Live, and General Hospital. Initially portrayed by Antoinette Byron, the role was then portrayed by Robin Christopher for most of the next 25 years, with the exception of the mid-1990s, when Carrie Genzel portrayed the character.

<i>Bug</i> (play) 1995 play by Tracy Letts

Bug is a play by American playwright Tracy Letts. Exploring themes of paranoia and conspiracy theories, the play tells the story of a woman who, as she spends time with a newly acquainted man in her motel room, starts sharing more and more of his paranoias. It premiered in London 1996, and was also performed around the United States between 2000 and 2004.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tracy Letts</span> American actor and screenwriter

Tracy S. Letts is an American actor, playwright, and screenwriter. He started his career at the Steppenwolf Theatre before making his Broadway debut as a playwright for August: Osage County (2007), for which he received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama and the Tony Award for Best Play. As an actor, he won the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play for the Broadway revival of Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (2013).

<i>White Cargo</i> 1942 film by Richard Thorpe

White Cargo is a 1942 American drama film starring Hedy Lamarr and Walter Pidgeon, and directed by Richard Thorpe. Released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, it is based on the 1923 London and Broadway hit play by Leon Gordon, which was in turn adapted from the 1912 novel Hell's Playground by Ida Vera Simonton. The play had already been made into a British part-talkie, also titled White Cargo, with Maurice Evans in 1930. The 1942 film, unlike the play, begins in what was then the present-day, before unfolding in flashback.

<i>State Fair</i> (1945 film) 1945 original musical film

State Fair is a 1945 American Technicolor musical film directed by Walter Lang, with original music by Rodgers and Hammerstein. It is a musical adaptation of the 1933 film of the same name starring Janet Gaynor and Will Rogers. The 1933 film is an adaptation of the 1932 novel by Phil Stong. This 1945 musical film stars Jeanne Crain, Dana Andrews, Dick Haymes, Vivian Blaine, Fay Bainter, and Charles Winninger. State Fair was remade in 1962, starring Pat Boone and Ann-Margret.

"Señor Macho Solo" is the seventh episode of the third season of the American television comedy series 30 Rock, and the 43rd overall episode of the series. It was written by co-executive producer Ron Weiner and directed by Beth McCarthy. The episode originally aired on NBC in the United States on January 8, 2009. Peter Dinklage, Salma Hayek, and Sherri Shepherd guest star in "Señor Macho Solo", and there are cameo appearances by Billy Bush and Nancy O'Dell.

References

  1. Jones, Chris. "Review: ‘The Man From Nebraska’" Variety, December 7, 2003
  2. 1 2 3 Stevens, Rob (March 2006). "The Man From Nebraska". theatermania.com. Retrieved 10 March 2012.
  3. 1 2 Oxman, Steven (March 20, 2006). "Legit Reviews: Man From Nebraska". Variety. Retrieved 10 March 2012.
  4. "2004 Finalists". The Pulitzer Prizes. Retrieved 10 March 2012.
  5. Cast 2st.com
  6. Clement, Olivia. " 'Man from Nebraska' Opens at Second Stage" Playbill, February 15, 2017
  7. Clement, Olivia. " 'Man from Nebraska', 'Joan of Arc', and More Extend Off-Broadway" Playbill, February 22, 2017
  8. Letts, Tracy (2005). Man From Nebraska. New York, NY: Dramatists Play Service Inc.
  9. "The Naked Critic: Tracy Letts' Man From Nebraska". theatreport. Archived from the original on 3 September 2014. Retrieved 10 March 2012.
  10. Reid, Kerry. " 'Man From Nebraska' is Letts' underrated play" Chicago Tribune, April 7, 2011