Summary

Can someone honestly love a person whom they have deceived for thirty years? This is the central question behindWrecks, Neil LaBute's latest foray into the dark side of human nature. Meet Edward Carr: loving father, successful businessman, grieving widower. In this concise powerhouse of a play, LaBute limns the boundaries of love, exploring the limits of what society will accept versus what the heart will desire. This collection also features rarely staged short plays, including "Liars' Club," "Coax," and the never-before-seen "Falling in Like." Neil LaBute 's most recent works for the stage includeFat Pig(Faber, 2004), which won the Outer Critics Circle Award for Outstanding Off Broadway Play, andSome Girl(s)(Faber, 2006). Can someone honestly love a person whom they have deceived for thirty years? This is the central question behindWrecks, Neil LaBute's latest foray into the dark side of human nature. Meet Edward Carr: loving father, successful businessman, grieving widower. In this concise powerhouse of a play, LaBute limns the boundaries of love, exploring the limits of what society will accept versus what the heart will desire. This collection also features rarely staged short plays, including "Liars' Club," "Coax," and the never-before-seen "Falling in Like." "LaBute . . . continues to probe the fascinating dark side of individualism . . . [His] great gift is to live in and to chronicle that murky area of not-knowing, which mankind spends much of its waking life denying."--John Lahr,The New Yorker "LaBute's . . . cruel wit and chronicles of immoral moralizers have made him, arguably, the most legitimately provocative and polarizing playwright at work today."--David Amsden,New York "A tough-minded writer."--Michael Kuchwara,The Washington Post "LaBute . . . continues to probe the fascinating dark side of individualism . . . [His] great gift is to live in and to chronicle that murky area of not-knowing, which mankind spends much of its waking life denying."--John Lahr,The New Yorker "A playwright [with] an unparalleled ear for dialogue."--Jacque Le Sourd,The Journal News "The showstopper is the title play, in which a widower mourning his deceased wife discloses a secret so mind-blowing that your reaction is to immediately reread the play. And then maybe riot and burn some place down."--Men's Journal

Author Biography

Neil LaBute ’s most recent works for the stage include Fat Pig (Faber, 2004), which won the Outer Critics Circle Award for Outstanding Off Broadway Play, and Some Girl(s) (Faber, 2006).

Preface : stage orphans
Wrecks	p. 1
Liars club	p. 35
Union Square	p. 53
Love at twenty	p. 65
Land of the dead	p. 75
Stand-up	p. 87
Coax	p. 97
Falling in like	p. 115
Table of Contents provided by Blackwell. All Rights Reserved.

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Excerpts

Wrecks

For Charles Isherwood--who should've known better

Production History

Wreckshad its world premiere on November 23, 2005, at the Everyman Palace Theatre in Cork, Ireland. Artistic Director: Patrick Talbot. Director: Neil LaBute. Scenic and Costume Design: Klara Zieglerova. Lighting: Paul Denby. Sound: Mark Donovan. Production Manager: Mary Michele Miner.

EDWARD CARREd Harris

Wreckshad its U.S. premiere on October 10, 2006, at the Public Theater in New York City. Artistic Director: Oskar Eustis. Director: Neil LaBute. Scenic and Costume Design: Klara Zieglerova. Lighting: Christopher Akerlind. Sound: Robert Kaplowitz. Production Managers: Cole Bonenberger and Mary Michele Miner.

EDWARD CARREd Harris