Appropriate

by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins

Every estranged member of the Lafayette clan has descended upon the crumbling Arkansas homestead to settle the accounts of the newly-dead patriarch. As his three adult children sort through a lifetime of hoarded mementos and junk, they collide over clutter, debt, and a contentious family history. But after a disturbing discovery surfaces among their father's possessions, the reunion takes a turn for the explosive, unleashing a series of crackling surprises and confrontations.
Winner of the 2014–2015 Obie Award for Best New American Play.

Genres: Plays, Drama, Theatre, Fiction, School, Historical Fiction, Race

100 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2013

Reviews

[Doug]

Rating raised from a 3 to a 4.

New review, 12/23: Although I first read this 5 years ago, I wanted to revisit it, as it just opened on Broadway to rave reviews (and has already been extended), the first of this black playwright's works to make it to the 'Great White Way' (so to speak!). Although this seems to owe debts to many other similar works (most notably August: Osage County and even more so to Buried Child), it is really its own peculiar animal, and I wish I could get to NY to see its current incarnation with Sarah Paulson, Corey Stoll and Elle Fanning. Apparently it has been substantially rewritten since this original script, so perhaps the flaws I first noted have now been done away with.

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/18/th...
https://www.theguardian.com/stage/202...
https://www.msn.com/en-us/movies/news...




Original review, 4/18: An intriguing play, as it presents the foibles of a Southern white family confronting their underlying inherent racism, as dissected by a black playwright - but I found the tonal shifts, from cornpone comedy to mordant melodrama, a bit disconcerting. Also, there are long stretches of the play in which characters essentially scream at each other non-stop, which I think would get wearisome quickly. Finally, the end scenes would seem to be next to impossible to stage as written, unless a theatre company was spending their entire yearly budget on special effects for a single show.

[sam lucas]

just incredible, such a feat to have every single character be simultaneously despicable and sympathetic. would sell 14 of my organs to see this live. can’t believe that u could write this and then write everybody afterwards.

[Nat K]

I got to see this play performed by the STC yesterday and it is amazing.

Incredibly powerful writing - brought brilliantly to life by the amazing production.

I cannot wait to read this at some point. I have to squeeze it in somewhere. I so want to digest these words with my own eyes.


https://www.instagram.com/p/CLnmfX2pvbd/
https://www.instagram.com/p/CM1Hc-RrGdz/

[Mckayla Witt]

You know what kinda writer you gotta be to make me cry at a vicious bitch’s 11 o’clock monologue?

[•Kait• •Boers•]

OH BOY

This is a very good play—it’s messy and human. How do you handle learning hard truths about your beloved dead? How do you tell your children? How do you move forward among the messiness of reality?

[Regan Owen]

I absolutely loved this play. Each character was so perfectly drawn, flaws and all, and the plot was so energetic the play moved so quickly. But I still found myself marinading in the grief, guilt, embarrassment, complicated love each of the characters were exhibiting. Reading this was very cathartic in a way, especially in a climatic moment toward the end. I wish I could see this on Broadway right now, so good.

[Colton Butcher]

Brandon Jacob-Jenkins is a powerhouse modern playwright. Appropriate was powerful, emotional, current, and smart. BJJ is a playwright to keep your eyes on and someone I will voraciously read over and over.

[Alexis]

Now I really wish I could have seen this play. Damn.

It reads really well. It's so easy to picture, and it's such a great, semi-universal premise. At some point, many of us find ourselves going through the belongings of our lost loved ones. It's often overwhelming. Sometimes, it's cathartic. Always we hope it goes better than it does in this play, and always we hope we don't find something that calls into question our memory/image of the lost person (at least if that memory or image is a good one).

This is tense. It's chaotic. The staging at the end sounds brilliant. It's a really, REALLY good play.

[aLirEza nEjaTi]

Plantation to sell

[Devoree Ellis]

Brilliant. Fascinating. Toni is a helluva character. River is beautiful. I loved it.

[Mya]

Theatre kid unlocked

[Sara Alanis]

3.5/5 ⭐️

Every time I thought things couldn’t be more messed up I was proven wrong. Anyway, I actually really liked the ending with the cicadas and stuff.

[John Perine]

4.5 stars

[Kaki]

The cicadas get me every time. Such a beautiful, real work. Feels like a modern “Our Town.”

[Scott]

This is what happens when family gets together and secrets arise!

[Rachel Grace Leman]

I feel like this deserves a 4.5, but I enjoyed reading it so much that I’m rounding up.

This is such a good character study of how white people contort our own narratives to assuage our guilt in order to continue benefiting from white privilege. The fact that the most redeeming member of the core family is someone who explicitly committed statutory really says something about this crop of characters. I have a feeling this one will stick with me for a while.

I would love to see this performed, because I do fear the numbers of monologues could bog down the show, and I’d like to see how a good director works around the huge chunks of text.

[Izebrakyah]

I saw this play at an off broadway or Broadway theater and it was a well-written play that made me feel the feels. I was off-put by the all white cast but it made sense going through the play. I very much appreciated the historian background of BJJ (Branden Jacob-Jenkins) coming through in the dramaturgical elements of the play

[Gabe Steller]

A funny, stressful play about a white family tearing itself apart trying to decide whether to completely deny, or profit handsomely from, its vile racist past!

A reminder of the wonderful utility of fiction, and how it enables us to explore imaginary scenarios that have surely never happened before!

[Theo Chen]

had to watch fun tiktoks after reading this because I was so shook.
BJJ writes such great dialogue - so much is shared about character, history, tensions - a great study.

[freya]

Second act of this is especially remarkable, and the stage directions are particularly well-written (that epilogue!). Will definitely be keeping an eye on Jacobs-Jenkins’ other work in the future

[Jessica Hirsh]

This was really quite excellent, and I'll be chewing on it for a little while. I found the metaphor of the cicadas to be really interesting, and I'm curious how that would translate on stage.

[Jack Watson]

The best play I've ever read. Jaw dropping, seriously. I had goosebumps throughout reading. Can't wait to discuss this in my class and write my paper on it.

[Dayna Cheatham]

4.5 Stars

[Holly]

This is my first time reading a play.
Wow, I was wrapped into every element of this play.
I hope to see this live one day.

[jb]

ohhhhh i need to see this ASAP

[Van Angelo]

Loved how clear and nuanced these characters were in
Such a concise amount of time, I really love the theme of playing with history whether that be personal or surrounding this was a wonderful play

[Alex Lavin]

My sisters better be ready for the day I write a play about us all returning to our childhood home and yelling at each other

[Maeve]

holy shit

[tabitha]

Kind of brilliant. Branden jacobs-jenkins I respect your game immensely

[Caroline]

i bought many plays at the southeast theatre conference in chattanooga TN. this is #1. disturbing!