''Uncommon Women and Others'' (1977), is the first

play Play most commonly refers to: * Play (activity), an activity done for enjoyment * Play (theatre), a work of drama Play may refer also to: Computers and technology * Google Play, a digital content service * Play Framework, a Java framework * P ...

by noted 20th-century American playwright

Wendy Wasserstein Wendy Wasserstein (October 18, 1950 – January 30, 2006) was an American playwright. She was an Andrew Dickson White Professor-at-Large at Cornell University. She received the Tony Award for Best Play and the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1989 ...

Production history

The play was initially produced at Yale University in 1975, as Wasserstein's master's thesis. The play premiered Off-Broadway in a production by the Phoenix Theatre on November 21, 1977 and closed on December 4, 1977 after 22 performances. It was directed by

Steven Robman Steven I. "Steve" Robman (born September 27, 1944) is an American television and theatre director/ producer. Biography He graduated from Alexander Hamilton High School in Los Angeles, California (1962), University of California, Berkeley (1966), ...

and performed at the Marymount Manhattan Theatre, New York. The play was revived Off-Broadway by the Second Stage Theatre, in a production at the Lucille Lortel Theatre, running from October 26, 1994 to January 1, 1995. Directed by Carole Rothman, the cast featured Joan Buddenhagen (Leilah).

Characters and stage cast (1977)

Source: Lortel *

Glenn Close Glenn Close (born March 19, 1947) is an American actress. Throughout her career spanning over four decades, Close has garnered numerous accolades, including two Screen Actors Guild Awards, three Golden Globe Awards, three Primetime Emmy Awards ...

- Leilah *

Swoosie Kurtz Swoosie Kurtz ( ; born September 6, 1944) is an American actress. She is the recipient of an Emmy Award and two Tony Awards. Kurtz made her Broadway debut in the 1975 revival of '' Ah, Wilderness''. She has received five Tony Award nominations ...

- Rita Altabel *

Jill Eikenberry Jill Susan Eikenberry (born January 21, 1947) is an American film, stage, and television actress. She is known for her role as lawyer Ann Kelsey on the NBC drama '' L.A. Law'' (1986–94), for which she is a five-time Emmy Award and four-time Go ...

- Kate Quin * Ellen Parker - Muffet DiNicola *

Ann McDonough Anne, alternatively spelled Ann, is a form of the Latin female given name Anna. This in turn is a representation of the Hebrew Hannah, which means 'favour' or 'grace'. Related names include Annie. Anne is sometimes used as a male name in the ...

- Samantha Stewart * Alma Cuervo - Holly Kaplan * Josephine Nichols - Mrs. Plumm *

Cynthia Herman Cynthia is a feminine given name of Greek origin: , , "from Mount Cynthus" on Delos island. The name has been in use in the Anglosphere since the 1600s. There are various spellings for this name, and it can be abbreviated to Cindy, Cyndi, Cyndy, ...

- Susie Friend * Anna Levine - Carter * Alexander Scourby - Narrator (voice)

Plot summary

Alumnae of Mount Holyoke College (Wasserstein's alma mater) meet for lunch one day in 1978 and talk about their time together in college. The play is thus a series of flashbacks to the 1972-1973 school year as seven seniors and one freshman try to "discover themselves" in the wake of

second-wave feminism Second-wave feminism was a period of feminist activity that began in the early 1960s and lasted roughly two decades. It took place throughout the Western world, and aimed to increase equality for women by building on previous feminist gains. ...

Film

A made-for-television film was broadcast on the PBS Great Performances series in 1978, with all of the stage cast reprising their roles, except that

Meryl Streep Mary Louise Meryl Streep (born June 22, 1949) is an American actress. Often described as "the best actress of her generation", Streep is particularly known for her versatility and accent adaptability. She has received numerous accolades throu ...

played Leilah.

Critical response

In reviewing the 1994 revival, Jeremy Gerard wrote in ''Variety'' that the premiere of ''Uncommon Women and Others'' was "a happy matching of a new writer with a gifted director and an amazing cast, all for a play that seemed to distill the conflicts and uncertainties of its time into a memorable blend of raunchy wit and sober apprehension...a new voice in the theater had an extraordinary debut."Gerard, Jeremy
''Uncommon Women and Others'' Review
variety, October 18, 1994

References

Sources

*Wasserstein, Wendy. ''The Heidi Chronicles, Uncommon Women and Others, & Isn't It Romantic.'' New York: Vintage, 1990. {{ISBN, 0-679-73499-6 *Wasserstein, Wendy.
Uncommon Women and Others
' - google books

External links

- ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

''
Lortel listing, 1977
*
College Honors Wendy Wasserstein '71 with Staged Reading
' Uncommon Women and Others Uncommon Women and Others Uncommon Women and Others Uncommon Women and Others Uncommon Women and Others