"An ear for reproducing everyday language has long been David Mamet's hallmark and he has now employed it to skewer the dogmatic, puritannical streak which has become commonplace on and off the campus. With Oleanna he continues an exploration of male-female conflicts begun with Sexual Perversity in Chicago in 1974. Oleanna cogently demonstrates that when free thought and dialogue are imperilled, nobody wins." (Michael Wise, Independent) In Oleanna "John and Carol go to it with hand-to hand combat that amounts to a primal struggle for power. As usual with Mamet, the vehicle for that combat is crackling, highly distilled dialogue unencumbered by literary frills or phony theatrical ones." (Frank Rich, International Herald Tribune)
Customer Reviews:
Avg. Customer Rating: 4.0 / 5.0
But Then, What Am I Doing Here...?:
Audience members tend to get caught up in the question of whether John or Carol is the villain of this tightly focused set piece. The circumstance is ambiguous enough to admit of multiple variations. But more important that that is the question: would you pay money to see a production of this play? And if not, why was it written? It's interesting to compare this 1992 play to the movies Mamet was writing and directing at about the same time. In his movies, the characters tended to speak in flat tones,... more info
Skilled dialogue drama which does not overpower:
This is a fast- paced little drama in hard- hitting colloquial language. Two characters a university teacher and his student are the whole action. It begins with the girl student petitioning for a passing grade, but in time becomes complicated by her charging the teacher with harassment. As their dialogue is going on the teacher is also having to deal with the purchase of a house, and family problems. Both teacher and student feel failures but somehow the common element of their situation does not bring... more info
Oleanna - Mean and Frustrating:
"Oleanna" was a very, very frustrating read for me. First of all, a lot of it probably has to do with the fact that it is meant to be seen and heard, not read. Nonetheless, I'm convinced that a lot of the frustration is intentional. Everything the characters say is mixed up, incompleted, and confusing. The author, or playwright, Mamet, seems to have a very condescending opinion, almost disgust, for the English language. The confusion and misunderstanding is written in a way that makes our language appear... more info
Mainzerjacob got it right!:
Although this play has often been characterized as a critique of "political correctness" gone insane, coming as it does on the heels of the Anita Hill-Clarence Thomas hearings, the earlier reviewer got it right. Read the epigraph! This is a play that rewards multiple readings and is worthy of a place in the curriculum of a college English class. One thing is certain: it will inspire class discussion!
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