"Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" what's with that anyway?
"Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" what's with that anyway?
GypsyRoseLee
Broadway Star Joined: 7/5/04
#0"Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" what's with that anyway?
Posted: 8/15/05 at 2:18pm
I get that the title refers to a song that the characters sing and laugh at while in a drunken stupor, but what is the significance of it? WHAT DOES IT ALL MEAN?!
#1re: 'Who's Afriad of Virginia Woolf' what's with that anyway?
Posted: 8/15/05 at 2:27pm
The true title of the piece lies in the names for each of the acts. I feel at least.
Just like GlenGarry Glenross.......it's just the names of two types of estates they sold.
Yankeefan007
Broadway Legend Joined: 3/20/04
#2re: 'Who's Afriad of Virginia Woolf' what's with that anyway?
Posted: 8/15/05 at 2:27pmAlbee saw it written on a wall of a club he was in, while writing the play.
#3re: 'Who's Afriad of Virginia Woolf' what's with that anyway?
Posted: 8/15/05 at 2:28pmThat too.....lol
MargoChanning
Broadway Legend Joined: 4/5/04
#4re: 'Who's Afriad of Virginia Woolf' what's with that anyway?
Posted: 8/15/05 at 2:34pm
Yeah, wasn't it the old Ninth Circle? I think it was written on the bathroom mirror as I recall.
And the phrase is generally interpreted as being a metaphor for "Who's afraid of living a life without illusion and dreams?" At the end of the play, George and Martha are struggling with the notion of going on with their lives without the artifice of a "son" and having to confront the pains and disappointments of day to day reality without having the lies they had told themselves to help them cope.
#5re: 'Who's Afriad of Virginia Woolf' what's with that anyway?
Posted: 8/15/05 at 2:46pmI wonder if the Ninth Circle's bathrooms were less scary in the 60's than the 80's.
#6re: 'Who's Afriad of Virginia Woolf' what's with that anyway?
Posted: 8/15/05 at 2:50pmThank you, Margo. That's actually a pretty good way of putting it. However, I think that sometimes playwrights will call their play something completely random because it seems more "artistic" or "deep" or something. I mean, honestly, why isn't GLENGARRY GLEN ROSS called "SHELLEY'S LAST CALL" or "DIRTY ROTTEN REALTORS" or something?
#7re: 'Who's Afriad of Virginia Woolf' what's with that anyway?
Posted: 8/15/05 at 2:51pmVirginia Woolf wrote very elaborate, illusory stories (Orlando) all the while battling depression and eventually succombing and committing suicide. Albee saw a correlation here between George and Martha's creation of the story of their "son" and their self-destructive behavior.
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