Beverly weston is an alcoholic who takes his own life at the start of the play, leaving his wife, three grown daughters, and extended family to deal with the. Place plays a thematically important role in august. Osage county centers around the weston family, brought together after their patriarch, worldclass poet and alcoholic beverly weston, disappears. Oneills magnum opus long days journey into night, which takes place over the course of one very long day in the lives of the tyrone family whose patriarch is dying of tuberculosis and whose matriarch is addicted to morphine, is, like august, based heavily on the. Beverly is the patriarch of the weston family, a semifamous poet and academic who only appears at the start of the play. Husband of violet father to his three 40something daughters. The play opens with beverly weston, the patriarch of the family, speaking with johnna about beverlys wife violet, a drug addict with. Osage county tells the tale of the dysfunctional westin clan, who all come together after the death of patriarch beverly weston sam shepard. Mar 12, 2020 if a play can be entered as a favorite book, then i would love to nominate tracy letts august. Osage county ends with the daughters leaving and the mother alone in the house with the housekeeper. The father of the weston family, aged 69, an alcoholic and washedup poet. Osage county, which premiered in 2007, the dysfunctional and estranged weston family is brought back together after the. Osage county, a story of secrets and family dysfunction. Osage county costume design karen karen is a little flashy, she wears her clothes tight and in brighter colors than the rest of the cast.
The matriarch, violet, depressed and addicted to pain pills and truthtelling, is joined by her three daughters and their problematic lovers, who harbor their. Osage county characters from litcharts the creators of. This onepage guide includes a plot summary and brief analysis of august osage county by tracy letts. Osage county study guide contains a biography of tracy letts, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis. W hen tracy letts accepted the tony for best play in 2008, he finished his speech with a bitter kicker. Digital rights management drm the publisher has supplied this book in encrypted form, which means that you need to install free software in order to unlock and read it. In the play, the first line of the prologue is revelatory. Aug 01, 2014 trauma is a continuum of sorrow that ripples through generations of the weston family. In the broader sense, many of the characters complain about living in oklahoma. August osage county is one of many films getting hyped up around the awards period and as with many films it is not as perfectly brilliant as youll be told it is.
Osage county lesson plan contains a variety of teaching materials that cater to all learning styles. Osage county is a black comedy by american playwright tracy. A native american woman from the cheyenne tribe who is hired to be beverly and violet westons livein housekeeper. I suspect, based on my reading of the play i have not seen the production, that this might be the case with tracy letts pulitzer prizewinning play, august. Which is an odd thing to say considering the plays heavy subject matter.
This disdainful woman makes the viewer feel a variety of emotions. While much praise was given to the cast, the screenplay was praised by some and seen by others as too dark and. Jan 12, 2014 even though ive not had the pleasure of seeing august osage county on stage, i cant help but believe these two characters, in particular, would be better slated for the stage than the screen. Beverly weston as the housekeeper as well as the caretaker of his wife violet in tracy letts. Thats how it has always ended, thats how it will always end. Osage county is is both dense and funny, vicious and compassionate, enormous and unstoppable. Jan 16, 2014 w hen tracy letts accepted the tony for best play in 2008, he finished his speech with a bitter kicker. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets.
Winner of the 2008 tony award for best play, tracy letts darkly comic epic offers a painfully funny look at a family struggling in the desolate heart of america. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading august. Winner of the 2008 pulitzer prize, tracy letts darkly comic drama august. Theatre works fullcast recording, featuring members of the original steppenwolf. Related questions and answers for characters in august. Osage county study guide contains a biography of tracy letts, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters. Osage county is a portrait of the dysfunctional american family at its finestand absolute worst.
One of the most bracing and critically acclaimed plays in recent history, august. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one. We are referring to johnna in this question, who is appointed by mr. Beverly weston, sixtynine years old violet weston, bevs wife, sixtyfive years,old barbara fordham, bev and violets daughter, fortysix years old. Osage county pose at the guess portrait studio during 20 toronto international film festival on september 10, 20 in toronto, canada. Violet is beverlys wife, a strong but cutting woman who has been diagnosed. Osage county are disturbed, angry, and aggressively selfmedicated. This hilarious but poignant play about a dysfunctional family on the eve following the loss of a family member is full of kneeslapping, heartrendering moments that make each page a delight to read.
The first edition of the novel was published in 2008, and was written by tracy letts. Osage county is worthy of the praise it has received from critics and audiences. Osage county opens at the national theatre this week. It is as harrowing a new work as broadway has offered in years and the funniest in even longer. Apr 18, 2019 winner of the 2008 pulitzer prize, tracy letts darkly comic drama august. Packed with unforgettable characters and dozens of quotable lines, august. Sometimes theatrical plays dont translate well onto the screen. Beverly weston as the housekeeper as well as the caretaker of his wife violet in tracy letts play august. People can convince themselves they love a painted rock. Barbara is the first of the plays two major characters, the second being her mother, violet. Osage county original broadway windowcard written bytracy letts charactersbeverly weston violet weston barbara fordham ivy weston karen weston bill fordham jean fordham steve heidebrecht mattie fae aiken charlie aiken little charles johnna monevata sheriff deon gilbeau date premieredjune 28, 2007 place premieredsteppenwolf theatre company chicago, illinois original languageenglish subjecta family is forced to confront its past and present. Winner of the 2008 pulitzer prize and tony award for best new play, august. Bursting with humor, vivacity, and intelligence, august. Alcoholic, famous poet and former writing professor at the university of tulsa.
Osage county tells the dark, hilarious and deeply touching story of the strongwilled women of the weston family, whose lives have diverged until a family crisis brings them back to the. Some of the themes so present in the play are muddied when adapted over into a film. The main characters of this plays, drama story are violet weston, beverly weston. Mick lasalle is the san francisco chronicle s movie critic. Lr director john wells, actor dermot mulroney, actress juliette lewis, actor ewan mcgregor, actress julia roberts, actor chris cooper, actress julianne nicholson, screenwriter tracy letts and actress abigail breslin of august. Letts was born in tulsa, oklahoma to bestselling author billie letts, of where the heart is and the honk and holler opening soon fame, and the late college professor and actor dennis letts. Tracy letts is an american playwright and actor who received the 2008 pulitzer prize for drama for his play august.
Osage county was a threehour play that felt like two hours. The book was published in multiple languages including english, consists of 8 pages and is available in paperback format. The play premiered at the steppenwolf theatre in chicago on june 28, 2007, and closed on august 26, 2007. Osage county is a play written by tracy letts, which premiered at chicagos steppenwolf theatre in 2007 and was given a broadway showing shortly thereafter.
What you choose to show at the ending when the credits start, what the music is those are the questions we were dealing with. It was the recipient of the 2008 pulitzer prize for drama. Osage county very little of this plays out like comedy. Osage county has been produced in more than twenty countries worldwide and is now a major motion picture starring meryl streep. Theatre works fullcast recording, featuring members of the original steppenwolf theatre and broadway productions. Osage county was adapted into a film starring meryl streep and julia roberts. Family influences have shown to have both a positive and negative impact on an individuals.
Hopefully, the play will be embraced by college professors, for the text is rich with compelling characters and scintillating criticism of the modern american family. Shot here in oklahoma and based on the pulitzer prize winning play by tulsa native tracy letts, lots of people. Osage hits close to home for writer tracy letts playwright tracy letts won the pulitzer prize for august. Osage county, the pulitzer prize winning play by tracy letts, and explore the troubled pasts and relationships of the weston family.
Osage county is as complicated as the characters within it. Trauma is a continuum of sorrow that ripples through generations of the weston family. Osage county 20 cast and crew credits, including actors, actresses, directors, writers and more. The play tells the story of the weston family, which is forced to reunite after the patriarch. His wife violet meryl streep, who is fighting mouth cancer and a growing dependency on pain pills, sees her entire clan return home for the services, including her sister mattie fae aiken.
Supersummary, a modern alternative to sparknotes and cliffsnotes, offers highquality study guides that feature detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, quotes, and essay topics. Violet weston, excellently portrayed by meryl streep, is the matriarch of the family. I saw the play in early january, and instantly fell in love with it. Osage county premiered at the toronto international film festival on september 9. Inside youll find 30 daily lessons, 20 fun activities, 180 multiple choice questions, 60 short essay questions, 20 essay questions, quizzeshomework assignments, tests, and more. Karen would wear something just slightly inappropriate to the funeral, a little too low cut and a little too short.
Streep rages and deflates and rages again at full blast, and roberts is spellbinding in one of the most. Barbara is beverly and violets oldest daughter who lives in boulder. If a play can be entered as a favorite book, then i would love to nominate tracy letts august. This study guide consists of approximately 49 pages of chapter summaries, quotes, character analysis, themes, and more everything you need to sharpen your knowledge of august. Osage county opens with a prologue in which beverly weston hires johnna.
Analysis and discussion of characters in tracy letts august. Osage county premiered at the toronto international film festival on september 9, 20, and was released in the united states on december 27, 20. Osage county is literally the most exciting play of the year. Osage county is a tensely satisfying comedy, interspersed with remarkable evocations on the cruelties and occasional kindnesses of family life. When the patriarch of the weston clan disappears one hot summer night, the family reunites at the oklahoma homestead, where longheld secrets are unflinchingly and uproariously revealed. The threeact, threeandahalfhour mammoth of a play combines epic tragedy with black comedy, dramatizing three generations of unfulfilled dreams and leaving not one of its thirteen characters unscathed. It has been made into a twohour movie that feels like a month. Osage county quotes below are all either spoken by jean fordham or refer to jean fordham. This is the week of the long awaited release of the film, august.
They did an amazing thing, he said, in reference to the backers of august. Osage county has its roots in the family dramas of eugene oneill, tennessee williams, and sam shepard. Osage county tcg edition kindle edition by letts, tracy. The matriarch, violet, depressed and addicted to pain pills and truthtelling, is joined by her three daughters and. Violets husband and father of barbara, ivy and karen.
976 1223 821 635 768 344 747 1330 1669 1511 1597 707 604 1013 122 758 542 356 913 706 212 1211 1125 860 1151 669 295 1169 1042 909 118 1639 2 756 384 1192 839 169 1186 424 1043 906 429 88