In Fireworks Lie Secret Codes
THE STORY: The scene is a penthouse terrace on Manhattan’s West Side, where a group of friends had gathered to watch the Macy’s Fourth of July fireworks display on the Hudson River. As they sip wine and call out the changing colors, they also reveal the unrest beneath their apparent ease: one of the two male lovers who share the penthouse has decided to return to his native England; another couple sheepishly admits that they are fleeing Manhattan life for suburban New Jersey. The play ends as it began—good friends exchanging amusing anecdotes in the spirit of relaxed companionship—but the glints of truth which have emerged make it clear that their lives are more troubled and uncertain than appearances might suggest.
Filled with the sharp and funny observations which are hallmarks of Mr. Guare’s highly individual style, the play works on two levels as it captures both the surface glitter and underlying tensions of sophisticated New Yorkers at a penthouse cocktail party.
“The center of the evening, and its high spot as playwriting.” —Village Voice.
“It is a masterful work.” —The Hollywood Reporter.
“…Gives evidence of this dramatist’s irrepressible comic spirit.” —The New Yorker.
