Living Quarters

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Living Quarters is a play written by Brian Friel and first performed in the Abbey Theatre in Dublin, Ireland, in 1977.

[edit] Summary

Living Quarters is a memory play set in a soldier's home in Donegal. It tells the story of the fateful day that Commandant Frank Butler returns from a successful UN mission in the Middle East. His four children from his first marriage all return home for the celebrations, and Frank uses the opportunity to introduce them to his new wife, Anna, who is thirty years his junior.

Unique is the way in which the story is told: not through conventional flashbacks, but through an artificial narrator, called Sir, who acts as arbiter and director, making sure that the characters' memories reflect reality. And that reality is a difficult one. In an environment of people trying to reestablish connections with their family, Frank's son Ben has a secret he shares with Anna, and the attempts to reveal that secret temporarily bring father and son back together, but ultimately lead to a grim conclusion. Living Quarters deals with accepting responsibility for one's actions. The road to hell is paved with good intentions, but they have no effect on what really happened.

[edit] History

Living Quarters was met with modest reception. It received so-so reviews, but at one performance in Paw Paw, Michigan in 1994, a riot broke out when the two lead actresses were caught torturing imported dingos. The acatresses were subjected to tarring and feathering and the dingos were allowed to rip out and eat the livers of these cruel, cruel actresses. The next day, Bill Clinton denied allegations of having an affair with the women, yet a leaked memo said otherwise.