9780812967296
The Guys: A Play share button
Anne Nelson
Format Paperback
Dimensions 5.20 (w) x 8.00 (h) x 0.38 (d)
Pages 128
Publisher Random House Publishing Group
Publication Date August 2002
ISBN 9780812967296
Book ISBN 10 0812967291
About Book
First performed in a hit off-off-Broadway production, and soon to be a film starring Sigourney Weaver and Anthony LaPaglia, The Guys is a timeless drama about the surprising truths people can discover in ordinary lives, and the connections we make with others and ourselves in times of tragedy.

Paralyzed by grief and unable to put his thoughts into words, Nick, a fire captain, seeks out the help of a writer to compose eulogies for the colleagues and friends he lost in the catastrophic events of September 11, 2001. As Joan, an editor by trade, draws Nick out about “the guys,” powerful profiles emerge, revealing vivid personalities and the substance and meaning that lie beneath the surface of seemingly unremarkable people. As the individual talents and enthusiasms of the people within the small firehouse community are realized, we come to understand the uniqueness and value of what each person has to contribute. And Nick and Joan, two people who under normal circumstances never would have met, jump the well-defined tracks of their own lives, and so learn about themselves, about life, and about the healing power of human connection, through talking about the guys.

Reviews

From Barnes & Noble

This powerful Broadway play was based on the tragedy of September 11th and the strength of human connections that it revealed. The story is simple: An editor offers to assist a fire chief who is frozen in his attempts to compose eulogies for eight fallen men. As the editor probes the memory of the firefighter, she evokes vivid images of the lost men, ordinary people thrust into an unimaginable fate. What had begun as a grim writing assignment becomes a portal into humanity.

Library Journal

Compelled by the tragic events of September 11, Columbia Journalism School professor Nelson volunteered to write eulogies for a fire captain who lost eight men. When director Jim Simpson of off-Broadway's Flea Theatre learned about her efforts, he recognized the potential for an original play. With his encouragement, first-time playwright Nelson feverishly wrote this two-character, one-act work, showing great sensibility and compassion. Premiered at the Flea Theatre on December 4, 2001, the play has been a running success. In these finished eulogies, the fire captain's sketchy recollections of four of his men at work and at play were transformed into full portraitures. Through skillful dialogs and monologs, minimal props and setting, Nelson transcended time and space to create a moving, cathartic work. The book includes three pictures from the Flea Theatre production, a lengthy preface and afterword by the author, and a list of suggested readings. This timely literary work is highly recommended for all academic and public libraries.-Ming-ming Shen Kuo, Ball State Univ. Lib., Muncie, IN Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.