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Pity
Two bombs in one day is a foul coincidence
Don't forget the lightning strike
A normal day. A person stands in the market square watching the world go by.
What happens next verges on the ridiculous.
There's ice cream. Sunshine. Shops. Some dogs. A wedding. Bombs. Candles. Blood. Lightning. Sandwiches. Snipers. Looting. Gunshots. Babies. Actors. Azaleas. Famine. Fountains. Statues. Atrocities. And tanks. (Probably).
Rory Mullarkey's new play asks whether things really are getting worse. And if we care.
Don't forget the lightning strike
A normal day. A person stands in the market square watching the world go by.
What happens next verges on the ridiculous.
There's ice cream. Sunshine. Shops. Some dogs. A wedding. Bombs. Candles. Blood. Lightning. Sandwiches. Snipers. Looting. Gunshots. Babies. Actors. Azaleas. Famine. Fountains. Statues. Atrocities. And tanks. (Probably).
Rory Mullarkey's new play asks whether things really are getting worse. And if we care.
- GenresPlays
68 pages, Paperback
Published July 12, 2018
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
November 1, 2018
3.5, rounded up.
What I really LOVE about Mullarkey's plays is the exact same thing that drives me crazy - to wit, his wonderfully eccentric and 'sky's the limit' imagination, which make his plays exciting pieces of theatre - but virtually impossible to stage. This one not only requires lightening strikes, several bombs going off (thus decimating the set), a flooding of the stage so a coffin can be rowed across it, and an entire tropical island setting used for literally the final minute of the play. So it is not difficult to imagine he doesn't get produced very often, and only by companies with unlimited resources. However, his plays ARE great fun to read.
What I really LOVE about Mullarkey's plays is the exact same thing that drives me crazy - to wit, his wonderfully eccentric and 'sky's the limit' imagination, which make his plays exciting pieces of theatre - but virtually impossible to stage. This one not only requires lightening strikes, several bombs going off (thus decimating the set), a flooding of the stage so a coffin can be rowed across it, and an entire tropical island setting used for literally the final minute of the play. So it is not difficult to imagine he doesn't get produced very often, and only by companies with unlimited resources. However, his plays ARE great fun to read.
July 22, 2026
This is definitely a very Monty Python-esque play. It's absolutely hilarious and so, so, soooo good. It's so short, but so funny.
November 11, 2024
Grinnell ‘24 autumn show
This is so British politics coded
This is so British politics coded
August 27, 2018
This is one of those plays where the text is quite obviously the blueprint for a production but it's a GREAT BLUEPRINT
August 29, 2020
If ever there was a play to sum up the year of 2020 it would be this! Completely mad, bonkers and funny, Pity is a Post Dramatic play that seems to escalate further and further as it goes on - even ending with a pandemic! I'm curious as to how this would be staged, but know that it would be great fun to do so.
February 23, 2025
i love a really inventive, unique play like this one… just as enjoyable to read as it likely is to see performed (sooo curious to see what a performance would look like) despite the short nature of the story, i found the characters somehow two-dimensional but also so well developed, especially the two leads. really interesting themes !!! enjoyed it big time
September 7, 2024
first college audition
rolled around on the floor
got a callback!!!
callbacks are on sunday :)
very skin of our teeth vibes quite fun
rolled around on the floor
got a callback!!!
callbacks are on sunday :)
very skin of our teeth vibes quite fun
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews