Broadway Bound

by Neil Simon

Overview

Comedy

Characters: 4 male 2 female

Combination interior set.

Part three of Neil Simon's acclaimed autobiographical trilogy finds Eugene and his older brother Stanley trying to break into the world of show business as professional comedy writers while coping with their parents break-up and eventual divorce. When their material is broadcast on the radio for the first time the family is upset to hear a thinly-veiled portrait of themselves played for laughs.

"Contains some of

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780573690532
Publisher:	Concord Theatricals
Publication date:	12/08/2010
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	116
Product dimensions:	4.90(w) x 7.80(h) x 0.30(d)

Editorial Reviews

This third and final installment in Simon's semiautobiographical trilogy of plays—following Brighton Beach Memoirs (1983) and Biloxi Blues (1985), recordings of which are also available from L.A. Theatre Works—has brothers Eugene and Stanley struggling amid a family crisis to write a radio comedy skit in preparation for a major audition. A 1987 Tony Award nominee, it is a powerful and compelling story mediated by deft comedic positioning perfectly executed by the eight-person cast, particularly by Scott Wolfe (as Eugene) and Alan Mandell (as Grandfather Ben), who provide most of the laughs. The sound effects further make this a rich listening experience. For those fond of old-time radio drama and comedy.—Lance Eaton, Peabody, MA

Library Journal

YA The final play in Simon's autobiographical trilogy, this is nothing short of brilliant. The story is both rib-tickling and heart-wrenching; the Jerome family is troubled, warm, and funny. The late 1940s finds Eugene Jerome trying to tackle television as a comedy writer while watching the deteriorating marriage of his parents and a grandfather who marches to his own drummer. Readers of this play will feel the joys and sorrows of a bygone era when family played a larger role in one's life. Simon's exquisite imagery and humor capture the love each of us harbors for our family but loses within our cluttered lives. This play will be an asset to any theater collection, as well as one that many will choose for recreational reading. Joseph Harper, Episcopal High School, Bellaire

School Library Journal

The last play in Simon's semiautobiographical Brighton Beach Trilogy, about aspiring writer "Eugene Jerome," starts Eugene toward marriage and a career in writing comedy as his nuclear family undergoes various forms of fission around him. There are no weak links in the performance ensemble, only strong and stronger, with JoBeth Williams the standout for her often-affecting, even powerful, depiction of Eugene's mother. Of course, she does get the juiciest moments in this mixture of humor and drama. This deft production, while not profound, moves and entertains. The infectious laughter of a live audience enhances the experience. W.M. © AudioFile 2009, Portland, Maine

JUNE 2009 - AudioFile