And I think my early theatre experiences of seeing musical comedies (which my mother loved) sort of primed me for thinking

comedically. Abe Burrows and Frank Loessers How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying (which won the Pulitzer Prize, an unusual thing for a musical) was written and designed in a cartoon-ish style, and made fun of the business world. They sold wickets, whatever they were. The main character rose to the top out of sheer manipulation. The main executives went ga-ga over gorgeous secretaries, etc. It was lively and fun (and Robert Morse was great in it), and I think it influenced me a lot.

http://www.christopherdurang.com/QandA2.htm
How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying influenced me: it was quick and fairly satirical, Durang said.

http://www.kcstage.com/?a=Magazine&op=View&md=Article&aid=938&back=Mag&year=2009&mo nth=2&sid=1273625505

p 315 Matts introduction : If one looks hard enough, one can usually see the oder that lies underneath the surface. Once these detailes have been considered generalisations must be made. That exactly happens in business, ppl are have several strong exaggerated characters, a basic desire they act upon. But looking closer will give more details about their existence (give example of the lead woman end act 1, or the anxieties or word usage of the golden woman in her intro) Both plays use a small recurring motif, which is associated to one personality in the play. That is Emily and the bosses nephew. Emily start at page 317. Bete seems stupid minded on page 318. She doesnt have any special characteristics, just as the protagonist of the business Boo puts lots of energy into the business, already at the honeymoon p319, this leaves bte alone, this is the same as in business (see end act 1). Marriage of bette and boo is business read from Durangs perspective, that is the focus on the supporting leading woman. The theme is the same, both are looking for a men. There is another couple that is followed as a little mirror image. The woman does a lot to get the man and the man is not very interested, showing more interest in the business and the man world, a world woman should stay out of. Both plays end with a same situation in that the man comes to the woman, but still has a little place left in which they keep on doing their own theme. Because bette play is much more a tragedy he left out the scene in which bette and boo are very in love, which is added to business in the song aobut the melody of the name. Both boo and fince did not do a college Bette goes through hell to get babies why? All grande things are brought in a funny satirical way, such as the presentation of the baby. P 325. This is an example of a difference in tone. Matt can be aligned in Finch in that he wants more than the average life of the nameless singing and dancing cahracters. Durang summarizes this beautifully in: The sadness in Hardy - his sense of the waste and frustration of the average human life. P 326. This can be seen in Bettes life: then im going to pretend that Im going to have another baby. And then im going to have another and another and another. P 328 P 330 presents all the characters to have a psychiatric disorder, this can be seen as another take on the characters of business, who seem normal, but are if existing in real life very disordered. Durang focuses on: louder, faster, funnier. This is what he bussines is. (uit schrift) How is the human heart in conflict with itself (David alburn) in both plays?

Scene 17 Bette desires human affection and recognition, a theme that comes back in business There is a lot in both plays where the woman and man have a restricted space for behavior that seems quite stereotypical. The woman is the secretaresse of the man. The men are drunk and the woman stays and gets neurotic (333). Also the said and unsaid of soot and karl, eg. P 349 and the telling of a sexist joke. Bette keeps on trying to get by through religion, her only thing she can turn to as her ppl around her doestnet give her attention, can that be compared to the system of bussinness? Example of light humor is the pastor doing the bacon impression on page 352

Typically the characters in the bette are prone to be totally fixated on a small event and keep on going on about it, such as the rug during thanksgiving p 336 and Emily and her cello piece, throughout the play. These small fixations are pointing a larger desire, a desire to perform a certain role and be good at it. In bussines the ladies have the same, one wants to look intelligent and pretty, the other wants to look pretty for fince, etc. The structure of both plays are very episodic. Instead of greating great dance moves to end the first act with a strong emotional scene is made over the stupid fact of vacuuming gravy. Both acts end with a strong break up between finch and rosemary, because finch doesnt pay attention to rosemaries, need, the same goes between bette and boo. Instead of presenting rosemary as a woman who is after finch a big chorus is needed to explain that she is Cinderella and should want finch. Bette is the opposite and does everything to get boo attention, even get all the babies. Both matt and fince might be a little queered, or not along the normall expectations. In The Marriage of Bette and Boo, playin g at the Boulevard Theatre through Jan. 2, the sexuality of the narrator Matt is a veiled secret. Early on, in the first version of the play, there was a scene about Matt being involved with an alcoholic gay man. It just didnt work. Matt wasnt really the hero of the play in that way. The play was really not about Matt, but his family, so I cut the scene. http://www.wisconsingazette.com/interview/permanently-outrageous-aninterview-with-christopher-durang.html Verry bitter: p 349. Catholics can use birth control, that a joke on someone (enter Boo).

1,5 page talk about what are you going to do, exame the persons plays, introduce them Last 3 pages: play by playwright. What did you seen in A that influenced B? What do yiou seei nthe play that influences this playwright, that is evindent in te current play that the playwrite wrote? 1. Theme concenpt

2. Dialogue (wordchoice, phrasing, lengt of speaches) 3. Look at actions of the characters 4. Look at the number/gender of characters

Similarities between the marriage of bette and boo and how to succeed in bussiness without really trying. Explain a little plot of both Explain how it influenced him How can we see this in the play? His attitude towards the supporting woman in business is reflected in bettes character They have a lot of similiarities, they are normall dont aspire to big good marriages. The tone is not the same but the basic of business is used. This is further transformed in not only a fluffy jokingness, but in a jokingness which turns into a graveness and heaviness in making the audience face the issue at hand. This is done in a lot of his plays, thourgh the technique of taking the joke to far stretching it out and lingering in it, through which the sarcasm turns into a graveness. The most relatable characters are in both plays young energetic men