The Glass Menagerie
- by Tennessee Williams (3 week study)
The Glass Menagerie is a timeless, contemporary American classic. Williams’ beautifully crafted, semi-autobiographical play portrays the transformation of Tom Wingfield from a St. Louis warehouse worker during the depression who can only dream of adventure, to a merchant seaman who wanders the world. Tom’s freedom comes at a cost: he must escape his overbearing mother and his adoring, childlike sister, Laura, who is only free to express herself with the animals in her glass menagerie. When Tom’s attempt to provide Laura with a gentleman caller ends in disaster, he is forced to abandon his sister in order to save himself.
Anyone who has ever loved their family, but needed to go on their own journey of discovery, will laugh and perhaps cry at this tender portrayal of an artist’s life in a glass menagerie.