Plays by David Ives (Study Guide) - Variations on the Death of Trotsky, Words, Words, Words, Philip Glass Buys a Loaf of Bread (Paperback)

This is nonfiction commentary. Purchase includes a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Chapters: Variations on the Death of Trotsky, Words, Words, Words, Philip Glass Buys a Loaf of Bread, All in the Timing, Sure Thing. Source: Wikipedia. Free updates online. Not illustrated. Excerpt: Variations on the Death of Trotsky is a short one act comedy written by David Ives. The play depicts the death of Leon Trotsky in varying ways. The play is divided into eight scenes or "variations," which depict the last day of Trotsky's life. True to its title, the play calls for Trotsky to die at the end of each scene, and then continues on from near where the last scene left off, usually progressing the story a bit further each time. Since the play takes place on the day of Trotsky's death (one day after the attack) Trotsky is depicted with a mountain-climbers' axe sticking out of his skull (not an icepick, as is made clear a number of times throughout the show). Though this is apparent to the audience from the very beginning, Trotsky himself does not realize that the axe is there until his wife, known only as Mrs. Trotsky, comes in with an encyclopedia from the future which tells of Trotsky's demise. The third and final character is introduced near the end of the play; Ramon Mercader, the Spanish assassin who smashed, not buried, the axe into Trotsky's skull. While keeping with the tradition and style of Ives' plays of taking an odd conceit and playing it for laughs as the audience finds its feet before giving the big payoff, "Variations" is distinguished, along with Words, Words, Words and Philip Glass Buys a Loaf of Bread in that, while it begins comically, it may end either comically or dramatically, depending on the production. It is unique in that, of all of his works, it calls the most for a tragic ending. It is also unique in that it is arguably Ives' ...More: http: //booksllc.net/?id=423345