Play About the Baby

So I'd like to direct The Play About the Baby by Edward Albee. It's an absurbist piece. Not a style of theater I like usually. But there's something about this play. Four characters - boy, girl, man, woman. Boy and Girl have a baby. Man and Woman show up and steal the baby. Girl and Boy get angry. Man and Woman convince Boy and Girl the baby never existed in the first place.

The loss of a child is perhaps the absolute worst event a person could experience. I'd rather be tortured to within an inch of my life than lose one of my children. I'm not being dramatic here - that's just the way parents are wired. How can the man and woman convince the boy and girl that their child never existed? (Well, first of all, remember it's an absurdist piece.) This is a play about the horrors of life and how we all lose our innocence as life goes on. What do we do when the horror becomes too much? We retreat into fantasy. It's safe because it's not real. That's what theater is all about sometimes. Escape. This play shows the need for escape from the horrors of life. It makes no judgment about whether or not that's the right choice to make. It just makes you think about that option.

Have I ever escaped from the horror of my life?

Well, I suppose. Although my life is not horrible. Never has been. There have been some low points and I have escaped into fantasy. Books, theater, TV, even the internet. All are escapes sometimes. I don't feel bad about my escapes. I think we all have to do that sometimes. Like when a national tragedy happens. 9/11 or the Challenger explosion. Those were tough moments. I don't remember escaping, but I'm sure I did.

However, the key to the escape is that eventually you go back and face it. That's what's different about the Play About the Baby. These people have chosen self delusion for ever. At least, I think so. I'm going to have to read it again and examine the ending carefully.

Okay, enough for now. Baby is crying and toddler is saying "Guess what the picture is" over and over again.

Dads' work is never done.