Publication Date

1989

Document Type

Dissertation/Thesis

Degree Name

M.A. (Master of Arts)

Legacy Department

Department of Theatre Arts

Abstract

DESIGN FOR A DREAM is a full-length comedy in two acts and four scenes satirizing the family problems of the self-centered and egotistical members of our contemporary culture. Sixtyish Sue Lathrop is the irrepressible matriarch of the family. She's charming, lovable and completely irresponsible. Her younger son, Hal, is a carbon copy of his mother with a few added masculine twists. His wife, Ann, alternately adores him and loathes him, attractive as he undoubtedly is. Bill, the older Lathrop, has been cast in his late father's mold, kind, caring and the problem solver for the others. He's in the process of divorcing, since his wife objected to all the family demands that impinged on their relationship. Bill accepts this and plans to use his new freedom to, at long last, realize his dream: going on an archeological dig in Peru. The problems his mother and brother have incurred, a dishonest financial advisor, gambling debts with a Mafia connection, to name just a couple, threaten to make his trip impossible. Vi Martin, a very attractive and successful business woman, walks into this melange looking for a house to share on a temporary basis. The resulting conflicts and crises end with Bill and Vi going off to Peru and the others happily unscrambling the results of their own folly. The moral of this cautionary play is that the more things change, the more they remain the same.

Extent

92 pages

Language

eng

Publisher

Northern Illinois University

Rights Statement

In Copyright

Rights Statement 2

NIU theses are protected by copyright. They may be viewed from Huskie Commons for any purpose, but reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without the written permission of the authors.

Media Type

Text

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