Douglas Turner Ward's "The Reckoning" … is an acrid joke that is sometimes strong or funny, and sometimes not. It is about the bigoted governor of a Southern state who is blackmailed by the beautiful Negro whore he has been visiting on the sly, and by her pimp…. The play, which boils down to a contest of wits between the foxy governor and the even foxier pimp … is described as "a surreal Southern Fable," and it has indeed many dreamlike or, more exactly, day-dreamlike aspects….

"The Reckoning" is a smothering avalanche of words and oratory, and since the characters use Deep South accents and seldom pause for breath, I found a lot of it unintelligible. Liking or not liking the play does not seem especially pertinent. It is a hateful show—no doubt deliberately so. Mr. Ward is not out to attract or enchant or lightly amuse us, but his play's passion is alive, and despite all its faults, it does exist, which is more than can be said for most plays….