Escape In Tennessee Williams's The Glass Menagerie

In 1944, Tennessee Williams shaped the way of theatre by creating his own original genre. With his script of The Glass Menagerie, Williams was able to create a memory play: the first of its kind. WIlliams’ creation offered a new experience of a man, Tom, reminiscing on his past. While Tom was present for most of the memories, some events did not involve Tom, so he had to imagine what was actually happening during that time. This style of play allows readers and viewers to see true memories, but there also might be some warped perceptions. Tom recalls the time of his sister, Laura, trying to find a suitor. Her timid nature and slight impairment aid to her mother’s constant persistence over getting married. Throughout the years, many producers

Joanna Miles flat portrayal of Laura fails to produce a believable action of escape. In the script, Laura expresses her feeling vocally. During the moments leading up to Jim’s arrival, Laura’s actions are specified to show her fear: “She utters a low moan and turns off the lamp—sits stiffly on the edge of the sofa, knotting her fingers together” (Williams 770). As written in the script, Laura acts with her emotions. When she finds out that her childhood crush might be coming to her house, she views it as a catastrophic event, and she makes that evident by the actions that are written. However, in Miles’ performance of Laura, the dramatics of the situation are not completely brought to light. Instead of clearly displaying the anxiety that Laura should be

During the prologue of the script, Williams explains that the screen device is an integral part of the play; it provides emphasis to important parts in each scene. The broadway version of the play omitted the screen, but Williams approved of it still because of the powerful acting and staging (Williams 750). Harvey’s production, however, did not have dynamic staging. Their standard staging would have been elevated tremendously if they had chosen to use the screen device. The key elements on the screen could have provided an insight into the themes of the play including the continual attempts of escape. Of the elements that were present, staging did not fully contribute the way it should. The blocking of the play limited the characters. For most of the scenes, the characters fixated themselves at the dining table. During a crucial scene where Tom and Amanda have their first major fight, they are both seated at the table. The lamp that is giving them light is obstructing half of Amanda’s face, so it is hard to tell her facial expression. Then, when they do get up and move in the scenes they are poorly angled, which hinders the ability to truly see what they are feeling in that moment. This is not the only scene with mediocre blocking; there are multiple instances throughout the production that interfere with the theme and flow of the