A review by laurenleigh
Our Town by Thornton Wilder

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

3.5

Unclear how I got this far in life never having read, saw, or performed this play, but here we are. My mom said it was a prerequisite read before the new Ann Patchett book. The first two acts were...truly rather boring to read. I can appreciate that the bare bones set and the lack of props would have been avant garde at the time this was written, but it doesn’t have the same impact nowadays. The third act is where the entire message lies. I can imagine that a live performance could make this act much more poignant, but simply reading it wasn’t all that revolutionary to me. I think there’s something in the forced “old timey” quality that distances me. Like It’s a Wonderful Life, where there’s a sort of cheesiness that dilutes the impact for me.
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