Betty's Summer Vacation (Paperback)

by Christopher Durang (Author) "Betty Wow. This house is great..." (more)
Key Phrases: freezer door, Siezmagraff Well, Trudy Well, Betty Well (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
Looking for a little rest and time by herself, Betty rents a summer share at the beach. But Betty's luck turns to delicious lunacy when this sensible Everywoman gets drawn into the chaotic world of some very unsavory housemates - her friend Trudy, who talks too much; the lewd, seminaked Buck, who tries to have sex with everyone; and Keith, a serial killer who hides in his room with a mysterious hatbox. With sand between her toes, walking a thin line between sanity and survival, poor Betty will leave her summer vacation more terrorized than tan. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 86 pages
• Publisher: Dramatist's Play Service; Cover Cut edition (August 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 082221766X
• ISBN-13: 978-0822217664
• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 4.9 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #821,853 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Durang Gets His Bite Back, April 13, 2000

By	Ryan Hughes (Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Betty's Summer Vacation (Paperback)

It's been a rough decade for Christopher Durang. A handful of lukewarm scripts had people wondering if the vicious and yet strangely empathetic edge of his writing had been lost forever. Thankfully, with Betty's Summer Vacation, Durang is back with style. This bizarre allegory about our tendency to turn real-life tragedy into entertainment is right on the money and has all the earmarks of Durang's best scripts: A likeable but ineffectual central character fighting desperately for normality, an insane matriarch, and a cadre of strange characters imbued with an inhuman honesty that is unintentionally brutal, and completely hysterical. This will not be to everyone's taste; there are vile situations played for laughs (including a rape - possibly Durang's most disturbing writing since "The Nature and Purpose of the Universe"), and a healthy dose of absurdism and audience alienation. But if you like to think and laugh and be disgusted all at the same time, pick up Betty's Summer Vacation. If your idea of theatre comedy is, say Run For Your Wife, you best keep running.

0 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Comic or Perverse?, May 21, 2001

By	Karen Bryson "Karen Mueller Bryson, playwrigh... - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Betty's Summer Vacation (Paperback)

In this absurb comedy, Christopher Durang makes a bold statement about our violent society, our hunger for sensationlism, and how we have come to view human horror and tragedy as entertainment. Through characters that appear as stereotypes of dysfunction, Durang demonstrates the worst of human nature, amorality and a lack of personal responsibility. The audience is treated to rape, murder, maming, incest, sexual addiction...to name of few...all in the name of "comedy". I didn't find the play funny. Instead, it was very disturbing in the portrayal of a society obsessed with violence and horror...one not that far from the one in which we currently live.