Three Plays: The Late Henry Moss / Eyes for Consuela / When the World Was Green

by Sam Shepard

These three plays by Pulitzer Prize winner Sam Shepard are bold, explosive, and ultimately redemptive dramas propelled by family secrets and illuminated by a searching intelligence.
In The Late Henry Moss –which premiered in San Francisco, starring Sean Penn and Nick Nolte–two estranged brothers confront the past as they piece together the drunken fishing expedition that preceded their father’s death. In Eyes for Consuela , based on Octavio Paz’s classic story “The Blue Bouquet,” a vacationing American encounters a knife-toting Mexican bandit on a gruesome quest. And in When the World Was Green , cowritten with Joseph Chaikin, a journalist in search of her father interviews an old man who resolved a generations-old vendetta by murdering the wrong man. Together, these plays form a powerful trio from an enduring force in American theater.

Genres: Plays, Drama, Theatre, Classics

231 pages, Paperback

First published November 12, 2002

About the author

Sam Shepard was an American artist who worked as an award-winning playwright, writer and actor. His many written works are known for being frank and often absurd, as well as for having an authentic sense of the style and sensibility of the gritty modern American west. He was an actor of the stage and motion pictures; a director of stage and film; author of several books of short stories, essays, and memoirs; and a musician.

Reviews

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Late Henry Moss is by far the highlight of the collection, and incorporates a smattering of recurring imagery from Shepard's prior work in some fascinating ways. The conception of the flashback structure here is ingenious, and I wonder if this was the first - or one of the first - plays to utilize the stage in this fashion. Reminded me a bit of "Fool for Love" with its "old man" character.

Anyway, each of the first two plays here feel like they're directly about the relationship between Shepard's parents, both of whom I believe had passed by this point. Henry Moss here struck me as an amalgam of myriad father figures from Shepard's prior work, and is perhaps most pointedly similar to Harry Dean Stanton's Travis character from "Paris, Texas." The ending is so abrupt it's kind of shocking, but it's a credit to Shepard that it still feels like the only way it could have ended.

Eyes for Consuela is a fascinating and obtuse two-act play. Feels like an evolution of several of Shepard's recurring fascinations - the peculiar unknowability of romance and the gradual ways in which individuals can transform into each other. For a time, I thought this was going to go even farther than it did on the latter front, and the end result feels a little under-cooked (even if it’s still a far cry from the madcap nonsense of “States of Shock.”)

Fascinating also that this is a loose adaptation of someone else’s work. It fits so organically into Shepard’s oeuvre that this knowledge comes as a genuine surprise.

And finally, When the World Was Green. I found myself really struck by this, especially considering the context in which it premiered (the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, famously subject to a bombing). A howl to put an end to age-old enmities and idiotic blood feuds in favor of absolute forgiveness, but also - and perhaps more importantly - a treatise on the manner in which the pursuit of food ultimately binds us all. Never have I wanted to eat a mango more.

This is also striking as the final collaboration between Chaikin and Shepard, considering the way it approaches death and aims to impart wisdom on the way out above all else. It’s slight at first glance, sure, but Dave Eggers produced a much inferior version of this same idea (much more literally-realized) as a novella not too long ago, so the ability to produce something addressing these concerns with so light a touch is no small feat. The second-best entry in this collection ("Eyes for Consuela" being the least of the three).

[Ali · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reading what so ever written by Shepard means going through a shortened social history of America after ww II, and up till the end of 20.century. Plots are so simple and dialogues are not very much sophisticated. Maybe some of works by Shepard are not as interesting as the others, but for those whom are interested in sociology, and drama as writing-art, will enjoy reading or watching works by Shepard. Reading simple and plain plays by Shepard gives you dare to sit and write about whatsoever plot you have in your mind. Many of his plays are so easy, but honest, fluent and great as well. After watching Paris, Texas by Wenders, I believe Wenders shots matches with Shepard’s atmosphere and dialogues. ”Few American playwrights have exerted as much influence on the contemporary stage as Sam Shepard. His plays are performed on and off Broadway and in all the major regional American theatres. They are also widely performed and studied in Europe, finding both a popular and a scholarly audience" .
با وجودی که سام شپارد، موضوعاتی گاه پیش پا افتاده را با زبانی ساده و در عین حال بصورتی حیرت انگیز طرح می کند، نمی دانم چرا تا کنون به فارسی برگردانده نشده اند، یا احتمالن من ندیده ام. خواندن شپارد اگر هیچ نباشد، دست کم درس بزرگی ست برای آنها که می خواهند بنویسند، و آنها که سال هاست می نویسند اما آن چنان سنگین که انگار "وزنه برداری" می کنند! آثار سام شپارد به نمایش نامه ها و داستان های کوتاهش محدود نمی شوند. او در زمینه ی موسیقی جاز و پاپ هم کار کرده و برخی از سروده هایش برای خوانندگان صاحب نام، مشهور است. سام شپارد بازیگر سینما و تیاتر هم هست و در برخی از فیلم ها همچون "فرانسیس" یا "دیگه نیا دم در" (ویم وندرس) با همسرش "جسیکا لنگ" همبازی بوده است. سام شپارد هم چنین نقد تیاتر و سینما هم می نویسد و برخی از نقدهایش در مجلات مشهور انگلیسی زبان منتشر می شوند.

[Matt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ultimately, I feel like this collection consists of a first-rate playwright's second-rate work, but a first-rate writer's second-rate work is still better than a second-rate writer's first-rate work, if that makes sense.

4 stars for The Late Henry Moss (crazy, fun, bleak), 3 stars for Eyes for Consuela (strange but not strange enough, almost listless), 4.5 stars for When the World Was Green (just a really beautiful one-act). So, 3.83 for the collection overall!

[Timothy McNeil · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like Shepard's writing in general, but these really felt as though they could have used some polishing. Eyes for Consuela wouldn't commit to its own allegory, When the World was Green presents as too simplistic, and The Late Henry Moss spends too much energy (and space on the page) trying to evoke a feeling of uncomfortable brooding rather than letting the scenes build naturally or allowing for a sense of resolution beyond the uneasy one Shepard crafted.

[j_ay · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Late Henry Moss ****o
Eyes for Consuela ***oo
When the World Was Green **000

[Martin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Henry moss: 4 stars, others: 3 stars