Customer Reviews

Sappho: A Play in Verse

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This is one of the most remarkable, thought provoking, profound, and-- to put it bluntly-- gut wrenchingly tragic plays I have ever read. This great play seems to have been relegated to obscurity because it was written in verse by an outsider to theatre who's much better known as a novelist. In the immediately post World War II era, the pathos of the times found more of a theatrical voice in absurdism. While this play takes essentially the same dark philosophical view with very modern ideas, its verse style and ancient Greek setting must have seemed outdated. It probably smelled too much of literature and poetry to attract interest then. I sincerely hope it eventually will be resurrected and given the recognition that I feel it's due; for I continue to get more out of it at each reading, and I would dearly love to see it staged.

Set in 7th century B.C. Lesbos, the play is a very complex interaction of many characters who each represent different attitudes concerning the nature of the world at large and the role of the individual within that world. Some are proactive; others withdrawn; others self-centered. All have different ideals, and all become victims of real world circumstances that they could not foresee. Most of the play is an intricate, engaging, at times poetic and philosophical, at times passionate dialogue on the dilemma of how to live in an imperfect world. The tragedy is felt when even the noblest attempts fail miserably. The play seems to argue that any kind of idealism is hopeless. It is a very dark view, but elegantly and piercingly supported by the development of the plot and characters. This is only the main theme. There is much more to the play than this, and I strongly encourage everyone to read it for themselves.

Just a quick note to those who appreciate the historical Sappho as a woman who loved other women: the character Sappho in this play has only male lovers. We know so little about her that, in spite of the evidence of her poetry, this may not be unrealistic. This is in no way relevant to what the play is about, and I mention it only to prevent some Sappho fans from being disappointed.