As I've mentioned, I love this play. It is, without a doubt, one of my favorites, and I read it all the time. This time, getting out my copy to re-read for about the 10th time, I read it for the details...
1) The Greek Chorus. To me, this choice indicates that Vogel believes Lil' Bit and Uncle Peck to be the only two characters in a lot of ways. This is their story. There are other parts of their lives, but this play is the story of their relationship and the effect it had on the two of them. Writing a chorus kind of makes the other characters run together like wet paint. I love that about this script. We get the overall intention of these outside influences without specifically seeing many characters. For example, when Uncle Peck is fishing with BB, we get this tremendous concentration from Uncle Peck, and we aren't tempted to look at the little boy or his reaction to Uncle Peck. We get such tiny, concentrated bits from the secondary characters played by the Greek chorus that we only get their essence--which is all we need. I think it's brilliant.
2) The first time I read the play, I thought "How can/why is one actress playing one person over a span of decades?" It didn't make much sense to me that Lil' Bit was eleven, seventeen, thirty-five, etc. But, the more I read the play, the more I love that choice. We get to see the effect of Uncle Peck on Lil' Bit AFTER he's gone. It's like a "Where Are They Now?" segment. We get to grow up with her. I think Vogel made this choice because it really lets us get personal with Lil' Bit. We don't just see this glimpse of life like we do with a lot of characters in a lot of plays. We get a really well-rounded story about a person coming to terms with a relationship. And yet, even though we see a lot, I can't help but wonder about the gaps in the story we don't see. And that's the beauty of it--Vogel's still left some intrigue in there.
Here's a BONUS:
One choice that I've always wondered about is Vogel's decision to include the story of Uncle Peck going after BB on the fishing trip. It really makes me wonder if Uncle Peck was in love with Lil' Bit or if he was just looking for ANYONE to fill the gap. What do y'all think? Why do we see Uncle Peck being inappropriate with someone other than Lil' Bit?
I really liked, and enjoyed what you said about all the Greek chorus and other characters in the play. The play really is about Uncle Peck and Lil' bit's relationship. We get just enough from the minor characters to realize the reality of their relationship, but not enough to completely distort our view of their relationship. For example, we could have heard a lot more from Peck's wife, but we didn't. To much of her, and the audience would have sympathized with her. At the same time, if she was not mentioned at all, the reality of their relationship wouldn't be accurate.
ReplyDeleteInitially when I read the play, I thought Uncle Peck molested BB. At the end of the fishing scene he says a line "There's a really neat tree house where I used to stay for days. I think it's still here-it was the last time I looked. But it's a secret place-you can't tell anybody we've gone there... this is something special between you and me." It's very easy to assume that BB was molested from this line. However, someone brought up in class that Uncle Peck just can't connect with anyone his own age. That is an interesting thought. Ultimately, I don't know if he molested BB, I have changed my mind three times about it since starting to write this!
This was absolutely intentional. Vogel doesn't reveal it because it would wrap the play up too neatly. At the end, the audience is conflicted about whether Peck was a good guy or not. If it is revealed that he molested BB then it would cast new light onto the relationship between Peck and Lil Bit, and not in a positive way. There would be no more debate, which I think is the whole point.
DeleteI agree with you on the usage of the Greek Chorus. The other characters seem to come in only when necessary and just enough to give you a "little bit" and then move the story forward, because, indeed, the play is about Li'l Bit and Peck, not about the whole family, and while they have something to do with the play, they do not hold as important of a role as Li'l Bit and Peck. Something that I did come to ponder is the fact that what other family members say does shape Li'l Bit, her opinions of herself and Peck, while it is not as significant as her relationship to Peck, and how he may shape her, it is still important to the character. Also, I do believe you are right about the actress playing several age ranges. It's interesting to think of this perspective on the actress and character and I haven't really thought of it like that, but i do enjoy it! Thanks for a good read!
ReplyDeleteOn your bonus question: I believe that Uncle Peck was looking for anyone to fill the gap he had in him. Alcoholics are usually lonely depressed people which I think is what Uncle Peck was dealing with and then we Lil' Bit actually cared about him and payed attention to him, he latched on to that and didn't let go. Until he was forced to making him realize he was losing the only person who cared about him because he was forcing his love upon her in a way that she didn't love him back in the same way.
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