THE STORIES: The first play, I CAN’T REMEMBER ANYTHING, is a gentle, poignant study of two old friends, an elderly man and woman, who live in nearby houses and often take their meals together. She is a wealthy widow whose life seems to have come to a stop after her husband’s death; he is a retired draftsman, a doctrinaire Communist who was her husband’s best friend despite the radical differences in life styles and political outlook. Both lament the passing of better days, the lack of contact with loved ones, and the loss of memory that clouds the meaningfulness of the time left to them. (1 man, 1 woman.)
The second play, CLARA, is a powerful and moving drama in which an aging father is forced to come to grips with the crushing reality of his daughter’s senseless murder. Grilled relentlessly by a dispassionate detective, the father is unable to bring his memory into focus until, in the trenchant monologue recalling a disquieting incident from his wartime experience, the past suddenly clarifies the present and, relieving the father’s tortured conscience, unlocks the damning evidence the detective has been seeking. (3 men, 1 woman.)
Produced to critical and popular acclaim at New York’s Lincoln Center Theater, these outstanding plays find one of our theatre’s master playwrights at the height of his powers. The plays probe the personal and human sides of lives caught in the grip of forces beyond their control.
“…two brilliant new one-act plays by Arthur Miller…his ironically compassionate awareness touches all our lives.” —The Hollywood Reporter.
“Arthur Miller is the American Ibsen.” —Time Magazine.
“Arthur Miller’s admirable voice of conscience remains firm as always.” —The New York Times.
