Beth Henley Criticism
Beth Henley, an American playwright from Mississippi, has carved a distinct niche in contemporary American theatre with her unique blend of comedy, absurdity, and Southern charm. Henley’s debut play, Crimes of the Heart, brought her into the spotlight by capturing the eccentricities and challenges of small-town Southern life, particularly through its portrayal of the MaGrath sisters. The play’s compassionate and humorous exploration of familial dysfunction and emotional struggles won it the 1981 Pulitzer Prize for Drama, along with the New York Drama Critics Circle Award, as noted by critics such as Scot Haller and Edith Oliver. This work, often compared to the writings of Eudora Welty, highlights Henley's ability to intertwine naturalistic and absurdist elements into a cohesive narrative that resonates with audiences.
Henley’s journey as a dramatist began after she encountered limited roles for Southern women in acting, prompting her to write plays that reflect her unique perspective. Her early work, Am I Blue, set the stage for her breakthrough success with Crimes of the Heart. Alongside this celebrated play, Henley's repertoire includes The Miss Firecracker Contest, which delves into themes of beauty and societal expectations, as critiqued by Beth's Beauties. In Abundance, Henley explores the hardships and disillusionments of pioneer life, a theme reviewed by sources such as Abundance and Trying Them Out Off Broadway.
Critics such as John Simon and William W. Demastes have highlighted Henley's adept use of absurdist comedy to portray the coexistence of comedic and tragic elements within her storytelling. The absurd yet relatable scenarios in her plays, such as the beauty pageant redemption in The Miss Firecracker Contest and the mail-order bride hardships in Abundance, underscore her capacity to blend humor with depth, a skill further emphasized by Billy J. Harbin, who discusses her themes of estrangement and spiritual longing. Henley’s work continues to be a subject of analysis and admiration, providing insightful commentary on societal norms through a distinctly Southern lens.
Contents
- Principal Works
-
Henley, Beth
-
The Acting's the Thing
(summary)
In the following essay, Terry Curtis Fox critiques Beth Henley's Crimes of the Heart as an insubstantial yet special play that reflects the state of regional theatre with its comedic, ensemble-driven narrative about three southern sisters, offering non-judgmental, audience-friendly storytelling without substantial challenge.
-
Off Broadway: 'Crimes of the Heart'
(summary)
In the following essay, Edith Oliver reviews Beth Henley's play "Crimes of the Heart," highlighting its comedic portrayal of the emotional struggles of three Southern sisters, and praises Henley's original and talented dramaturgy, noting the serious themes addressed without disrupting the play's comedic tone.
-
Her First Play, Her First Pulitzer Prize
(summary)
In the following essay, Scot Haller contends that Beth Henley's "Crimes of the Heart" innovatively blends the structures of naturalistic and absurdist comedy to create a unique Southern narrative that treats its eccentric characters with wit and empathy, akin to the works of Eudora Welty and Flannery O'Connor.
-
'Crimes' Is Heartwarming
(summary)
In the following essay, Don Nelsen praises Beth Henley's "Crimes of the Heart" for its engaging blend of humor and mystery, deftly exploring themes of immaturity and familial dysfunction, while maintaining strong dramatic and comedic control to draw the audience into the nuanced lives of the MaGrath sisters.
-
Offbeat—But a Beat Too Far
(summary)
In the following essay, Walter Kerr critiques Beth Henley's "Crimes of the Heart" for its excessive eccentricity and tendency to push authentic observations into parody, while acknowledging Henley's promising talent and the play's unique blend of Southern folkways and humor, despite feeling that its characters lack depth.
-
Living Beings, Cardboard Symbols
(summary)
In the following essay, John Simon explores Beth Henley's play Crimes of the Heart as a work of heightened realism, highlighting its portrayal of familial love and sisterly bonds amidst the comedic and tragic elements of small-town southern life, emphasizing the play's capacity to evoke both laughter and genuine emotional engagement.
-
Backstage
(summary)
In the following essay, Brendan Gill praises Beth Henley's play "Crimes of the Heart" for its complex plot, Southern comedic influences, and the natural humor found in the misadventures of its characters, comparing her work to the styles of noted Southern writers such as Eudora Welty.
-
Dry Roll
(summary)
In the following essay, Michael Feingold critiques Beth Henley's Crimes of the Heart for its disjointed blend of comedy and pathos, and argues that the play's portrayal of Southern characters as simplistic and malicious lacks depth and authenticity, questioning its popularity in the South.
-
Reaching for Laughter
(summary)
In the following essay, Sauvage criticizes Beth Henley's Crimes of the Heart for its reliance on tasteless humor and illogical incongruities, arguing that the play's acclaim as black comedy is misplaced due to its unpleasant character portrayals and lack of genuine comic situations.
-
Two Cheers for Two Plays
(summary)
In the following essay, Stanley Kauffmann argues that Beth Henley's play Crimes of the Heart skillfully juxtaposes the comic against the grotesque horrors of small-town Mississippi life, presenting a condition without resolution to reflect the chaotic essence of the human experience.
-
Israel in Greece
(summary)
In the following essay, Michael Feingold critiques Beth Henley’s one-act play Am I Blue, suggesting that while Henley is skilled at creating absurd humor, her work lacks the poetic depth that could elevate the familiar comedic dynamics of her characters.
-
Two Parts Gimmickry, One Part Discretion
(summary)
In the following essay, Walter Kerr argues that while Beth Henley's early play "Am I Blue" demonstrates her dramatic talent and potential, its comedic elements sometimes detract from character believability, suggesting her work could benefit from more humanization to enhance its overall depth and effectiveness.
-
The Acting's the Thing
(summary)
-
Henley, Beth (Vol. 14)
-
Criticism: Overviews And General Studies
-
Beth's Beauties
(summary)
In the following essay, Jaehne critiques Miss Firecracker as a work that examines “how beauty affects who we are and who we wanna be.”
-
‘A Population [and Theater] at Risk’: Battered Women in Henley's Crimes of the Heart and Shepard's A Lie of the Mind
(summary)
In the following essay, Haedicke compares the depiction of domestic violence in Shepard's A Lie of the Mind and Henley's Crimes of the Heart, asserting that Shepard's postmodernist drama “ignites a politics beyond Henley's modernist drama, which can kindle only kitchen fires.”
-
Aborted Rage in Beth Henley's Women
(summary)
In the following essay, Shepard explores the effects of the feminist movement on the female protagonists of Henley's plays, in particular examining the recurring images of homicide and suicide.
-
Trapped in the Father's Dying World: Beth Henley's Crimes of the Heart and Anton Chekhov's The Three Sisters
(summary)
In the following essay, Rosefeldt links Henley's Crimes of the Heart to the Chekhovian tradition, in particular to the drama The Three Sisters.
-
Beth's Beauties
(summary)
-
Crimes Of The Heart
(summary)
In the following essay, the critic praises Beth Henley's Crimes of the Heart for its masterful blend of Southern Gothic elements, humor, and humanity, highlighting its compelling characters and intricate plot, while drawing comparisons to Tennessee Williams and Flannery O'Connor, yet emphasizing Henley's unique and consistently comic talent.
-
Criticism: Abundance
-
Abundance
(summary)
In the following negative review, the critic asserts that Abundance “is dragged down by its lack of an idea of where it's going or what it intends to accomplish.”
-
Yo, Kay
(summary)
In the following review, Simon offers a negative assessment of Abundance.
-
Trying Them Out Off Broadway
(summary)
In the following review, Torrens provides a positive assessment of Abundance by Beth Henley, noting its intriguing Victorian-homespun language and theatricality, as well as its inventive staging by Ron Lagomarsino at the Manhattan Theatre Club.
-
Abundance
(summary)
-
Control Freaks
(summary)
The critic provides a mixed review of Beth Henley's play Control Freaks, highlighting its dark humor and inventive writing, although noting a faltering shift in tone towards the end, while praising Henley's direction and the actors' performances, particularly Holly Hunter's portrayal of a woman wrestling with identity issues.
-
Criticism: Beth Henley: Four Plays
(summary)
The essay praises Beth Henley's Four Plays for its original development of Chekhov's legacy, highlighting themes of love, friendship, and resilience against adversity, while noting Henley's unique stylization of dialogue and her portrayal of historically and psychologically rich narratives.
-
Impossible Marriage
(summary)
The critic finds Beth Henley's play Impossible Marriage to be a frivolous and unengaging work characterized by eccentric characters, implausible scenarios, and theatrical overacting, suggesting that both the script and its direction fail to sustain audience interest.
-
Criticism: Overviews And General Studies
-
Henley, Beth (Vol. 6)
-
Author Commentary
(summary)
In the following interview, Beth Henley discusses her evolution as a playwright, outlining her early life, educational background, and experiences with acting and writing, while reflecting on the creative processes and inspirations behind her plays, particularly "Crimes of the Heart," and describing her initial reluctance and subsequent embrace of rewriting.
-
Overviews And General Studies
-
Familial Bonds in the Plays of Beth Henley
(summary)
In the following essay, Harbin examines five of Henley's plays, focusing on the themes related to the disintegration of traditional ideals, such as the breakup of families, the quest for emotional and spiritual fulfillment, and the repressive social forces within a small southern community.
-
Familial Bonds in the Plays of Beth Henley
(summary)
-
Crimes Of The Heart
-
Sisterhood is Beautiful
(summary)
Crimes of the Heart was first produced in 1979 at the Actors Theater of Louisville. It was then presented at several regional theaters before being staged off-Broadway at the Manhattan Theater Club in late 1980 and on Broadway a year later at the John Golden Theater. Simon's enthusiastic review of the off-Broadway production, reprinted below, was an influential early assessment of the play.
-
Her First Play, Her First Pulitzer Prize
(summary)
The following article includes a favorable assessment of Crimes of the Heart, as well as comments on the play by Henley and others.
-
Offbeat—But a Beat Too Far
(summary)
Kerr notes that disbelief was his prevailing response to Crimes of the Heart, maintaining that Henley pushes the play's improbabilities into the realm of jokes.
-
Living Beings, Cardboard Symbols
(summary)
Below, Simon evaluates the Broadway production of Crimes of the Heart, declaring that "this is one of those rare plays about a family love that you can believe and participate in."
-
Broadway Inches Forward
(summary)
Brustein offers a lukewarm evaluation of Crimes of the Heart, maintaining that while the play is whimsical and likable, it is unlikely to survive as anything more than a stock company favorite.
-
New Voices Using New Realism: Fuller, Henley, and Norman
(summary)
In the excerpt below, Demastes explores the manner in which Henley has taken domestic comedy and infused it with an absurdist perspective in Crimes of the Heart.
-
Sisterhood is Beautiful
(summary)
-
Author Commentary
(summary)
- Further Reading