Favorite play endings- Page 3

[The Other One]

Posted: 8/15/16 at 9:45pm

Shining City has a spine-tingling ending.

Six Degrees of Separation

Don't remember if it's the very end, but the unexpected appearance of Wee Thomas in The Lieutenant of Inishmore is one of my favorite theatrical moments ever.

Updated On: 8/15/16 at 09:45 PM

[icecreambenjamin]

Posted: 8/15/16 at 9:58pm

Doubt

The Goat 

[peerrjb]

Posted: 8/15/16 at 10:41pm

If it's done right, without the often-attendant schmaltz, I like:  "I love Helen.  Forever and ever"  from THE MIRACLE WORKER.  

The insane explosive-riot at the end of MARAT/SADE is pretty potent.  At least, originally.

In THE GOOD WOMAN OF SECHUAN (sp?) when the Woman looks up to the Gods and shouts "HELP!"

 

 

 

[Jarethan]

Posted: 8/15/16 at 10:50pm

There are so many, but I have to mention the following:

-- A Streetcar Named Desire...particularly with Cate Blanchette, who was an incredible Blanche

-- The Front Page and 'that sonofabitch stole my watch'

-- An Inspector Calls, at least in the last Broadway production.  I don't know if it is the play or the production the was so incredible

-- A Moon for the Misbegotten, particularly in the production with Dewhurst and Robards

-- The Plowman...I loved the show and thought the ending could not have been more perfect

-- Nicholas Nickleby...a great ending to a great production

-- Cyrano de Bergerac, particularly in the RSC production with Derek Jacobi, who gave one of the greatest performances I have ever seen

-- Good...IMO, a very underrated play, with a particularly thrilling ending

-- King Charles III

-- The Lady from Dubuque...an incredibly underrated, if flawed play with a very moving ending

-- Long Day's Journey into Night

-- The Great White Hope, with James Earl Jones carrying Jane Alexander's body across the stage.  The death was tragic, the pain was intolerable

-- The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie...not a great play, but benefiting from the great performance by Zoe Caldwell.  I can still hear 'my girls are the creme de la creme...you give me a girl of an impressionable age and she is mine for life'.

[Becky]

Posted: 8/15/16 at 10:52pm

The Pillowman and The Goat or, Who is Sylvia? 

[Michael Kras]

Posted: 8/15/16 at 11:56pm

Bar none, the ending of Lungs by Duncan Macmillan. The last two minutes of the play explore the final fifty years of a shared life using only text and my god, it's almost too beautiful for words. That whole play is a master class in the limitlessness of theatrical text.

[@z5]

Posted: 8/15/16 at 11:58pm

The ending of Blackbird KILLED me and is probably one of the most overwhelming and emotional endings I've seen. 

 

Next, would be last year's revival of A View From The Bridge.

[yfs]

Posted: 8/16/16 at 9:59pm

No one has mentioned THE FRONT PAGE? ! Geez! It's the best. 

 

 

[¿Macavity?]

Posted: 8/16/16 at 10:04pm

^Jarethan just mention that a few posts back.

[KnewItWhenIWasInFron]

Posted: 8/16/16 at 11:12pm

henrikegerman said: "
 

"(and, just for a point of clarification: People keep mentioning "An Inspector Calls" and it seems like maybe they're talking about the astonishing coup de theatre at the end of that most recent Broadway production, not the ending of the play itself?)"

The surprise and quite mysterious ending in the script of An Inspector Calls is quite famous.  Why would you assume that people aren't simply referring to that?

 

"
 

 

"Context of the thread, in which many -- if not most -- of the choices seem to be production-based rather than (as the title of the thread seems to indicate) play-based. I was merely asking the question to clarify.

 

[LesMiz24601]

Posted: 8/17/16 at 1:17am

Noises Off

Blithe Spirit: While the most recent revival with Angela Lansbury crowd pleasing, the 2015 "mini tour" (imported from the UK) had some unexpected moments and was exceptional 

The Mountaintop: Really the only reason to see the play IMO

The Best Man: Especially the staging of the recent revival

Lend Me a Tennor: The curtain call/speedy replay

The Normal Heart: I still have chills thinking about it

Updated On: 8/17/16 at 01:17 AM

[josiahjosiah]

Posted: 8/17/16 at 7:01am

THE LIEUTENANT OF INISHMORE by Martin McDonagh

hands-down my personal favorite ending

[Finch]

Posted: 8/17/16 at 2:31pm

The final line of "Tea and Sympathy":

     "Years from now, when you think of this . . . and you will . . . be kind."

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Jarethan]

Posted: 8/17/16 at 4:46pm

LesMiz24601 said: "Noises Off

Blithe Spirit: While the most recent revival with Angela Lansbury crowd pleasing, the 2015 "mini tour" (imported from the UK) had some unexpected moments and was exceptional 

The Mountaintop: Really the only reason to see the play IMO

The Best Man: Especially the staging of the recent revival

Lend Me a Tennor: The curtain call/speedy replay

The Normal Heart: I still havee chills thinking about i

I don"t know if the curtain call for Lend qualities as a play ending, but I loved that as much as you did.  I remember loving the play -- I did not see the recent revival --but for the life of me I can't remember anything about the play, other than from the perspective of the curtain call.  I always assumed that was Jerry Zaks (compensating for the fact the show was so short) rather than Ken Ludwig's idea...does anyone know?

 

[LesMiz24601]

Posted: 8/17/16 at 5:15pm

Jarethan said: "LesMiz24601 said: "Noises Off

Blithe Spirit: While the most recent revival with Angela Lansbury crowd pleasing, the 2015 "mini tour" (imported from the UK) had some unexpected moments and was exceptional 

The Mountaintop: Really the only reason to see the play IMO

The Best Man: Especially the staging of the recent revival

Lend Me a Tennor: The curtain call/speedy replay

The Normal Heart: I still havee chills thinking about i

I don"t know if the curtain call for Lend qualities as a play ending, but I loved that as much as you did.  I remember loving the play -- I did not see the recent revival --but for the life of me I can't remember anything about the play, other than from the perspective of the curtain call.  I always assumed that was Jerry Zaks (compensating for the fact the show was so short) rather than Ken Ludwig's idea...does anyone know?

 

 

"

Fair point. Here's the link to a sample of the script.

https://books.google.com/books?id=zoFQUBET-HEC&pg=PA129&dq=%22in+the+london+and+new+york+productions,+the+play%22&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwioj-LZrsnOAhUFlx4KHUJ_Ai0Q6AEIKzAA#v=onepage&q=%22in%20the%20london%20and%20new%20york%20productions%2C%20the%20play%22&f=false

Maybe this thread should be titled "favorite play proper endings" :)