Reviews

Heartbreak House by David Hare, Dan H. Laurence, George Bernard Shaw

emlickliter's review against another edition

4.0

Heartbreak House – You know how the younger generation looks back at the moral failings of their parents or grandparents while talking to their therapist about what a mess they are? This play feels a bit like that! Happy Reading!

lizzyjensenn's review against another edition

3.0

It was okay. I’m not a big Shaw fan so I had to read this and watch it in order to really get through it. Lots of conversation that requires full attention and watching a live performance to really catch and enjoy. Shaw humor is unique and depending on where or who you are it can be easy to miss. I’ll give another Shaw play a try, but this one isn’t my favorite. Ideal character would be Addy Utterwood. She’s fun.

letitiaharmon's review against another edition

4.0

Some cannot abide Shaw's pedantic and eternal dialogue, and while I see the inherent weaknesses of it, I confess a fondness for his verbose Britishisms. Heartbreak house is a marvelous parody of early twentieth century English society.

ejazhusseini's review against another edition

5.0

‘Heartbreak House’ is subtitled as ‘a Fantasia in Russian manner about the English themes’, which explains its influence from the Russian playwright and short-stories writer Anton Chekhov. In this play, which takes place in a ship-like house during the course of one evening, we have the owner Captain Shotover and his daughters Hesione, who lives in this house, and her Lady Utterwood who has come to visit after running off with her husband years earlier; also, we have their respective husbands Hector and Randall, and probably the protagonist of the play Ellie Dunn, a friend of Hesione’s who’s keen on marrying a rich, old man, but which Hesione is against. This play is eventful. There’s always something happening. Emotions are high and characters treat each other with brutal honesty. Hearts break, one after another, as secrets are unveiled, but the story continues as hearts are mended just as quickly. I was awe-struck by Shaw’s excellent dialogues and intricately woven plot which promises high drama from the first page to the last. The social commentaries, the arguments about morality, the insights into human relationships – and all of them carried out with such acute, brutal, and soul-shaking honesty – beckons to the greatness of Shaw’s understanding of the society and the humans that form them and his genius of bringing that understanding with so much life and rigor on the page. One of the best books I’ve read this year!

Full review:
https://hifzehayat.blogspot.com/2021/10/plays-review-heartbreak-house-waiting.html

mishalehoover's review against another edition

challenging dark funny mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

mindforbooks's review against another edition

5.0

Adored.

Going to see it on Saturday and will post my review after that with hopefully a sneaky picture of the set!

blueiris315's review

challenging sad