Currently I am reading (and re-reading) Tony Kushner’s play Angels in America: A Gay Fantasia on National Themes. I think it was instantly popular when it originally came out, but I’d never heard of it until Professor Hansen’s ‘Modern and Contemporary American Literature’ course. I’ve already recommended it to so many of my friends. The play explores the religious, political, and social climate of America during the 1980s AIDS crisis. It is all at once witty, honest, and informative. As someone who has had little to no exposure to this time period in America’s history, I am extremely grateful that this play was able to increase my awareness. Most of the characters in the play are relatable and I think I have a hate/love relationship with all of them. I suggest reading it when you have a lot of free time on your hands because it’s not likely you’ll be able to put it down easily. It’s intense, it’s funny, and it’s out of this world (literally, a few scenes are in a San Francisco-esque heaven). Once I have some more free time on my hands I plan on binge watching the HBO miniseries (Meryl Streep and Al Pacino are in it)!
A very enjoyable and succinct review that seems to capture what the play is about and to make you want to go out and read it (and see it performed with a cast that includes Meryl Streep and Al Pacino)! I also like the way you equate the concept of out of this world with a “San Fransisco-esque heaven”!! Your observations makes one realize how art reflects the world around us, as well as the impact art has on the understanding we have of the cultural, political and moral climate of the society we live in.
To say Angels in America changed my life might be pushing it — but not by much. It’s an amazing piece, and I hope one day you get to see it on stage, because that experience is truly out of this world!