The Seer

by Ali Smith

Neil and Iona are a comfortable but complacent couple with well-paid professional jobs in a Scottish metropolis. They dress both themselves and their home immaculately; their lives are ordered to the point of sterility. Into their lives bursts Kirsty, Iona's anarchic sister, who manages to turn the whole evening into a topsy turvy treat.

Genres: Plays, Fiction, Scotland, Adult, Drama

103 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2006

About the author

Ali Smith is a writer, born in Inverness, Scotland, to working-class parents. She was raised in a council house in Inverness and now lives in Cambridge. She studied at Aberdeen, and then at Cambridge, for a Ph.D. that was never finished. In a 2004 interview with writing magazine Mslexia, she talked briefly about the difficulty of becoming ill with chronic fatigue syndrome for a year and how it forced her to give up her job as a lecturer at University of Strathclyde to focus on what she really wanted to do: writing. She has been with her partner Sarah Wood for 17 years and dedicates all her books to her.

Reviews

[MJ Nicholls · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ali Smith is also a playwright of local note, and before I discuss her only play in print, I want to express my vexation at the word playwright. This one, more than any other word in the English language, is designed to confuse bad spellers, dyslexics and first-time learners. Why must the second syllable be a mash-up of ‘right’ and ‘write?’ Where’s the logic there? A person who writes plays should be a play playwrite. The play writer isn’t always right—in fact, most of the shows I see at the Edinburgh Fringe are so wrong there should be a second category of playwrongs for appalling writers. Ha. How droll. Enough! This play was performed in 2006 in the Highlands and Islands of Scotland (the Islands are some of those crusty bits not attached to the Scottish mainland, the ones that aren’t merely hills with sheep), and brings Smith’s inventive humour to the form. Of course, this being Smith, she’s determined to bring something fresh and clever to the stage, hence the fourth-wall breaking larks going on here. It has the wisdom and charm of an Alasdair Gray play, but brought into the 21stC with a slight shade of lesbianism. I’m sorry I missed it. Ali’s other performed plays were Fifteen Minutes and Just.

[Cathrine · Rating 5 out of 5]

This has to be THE best play ever :-) !

I can't review it as that would be such a spoiler ;-) but I highly recommend it.

This was a reread for me.

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is difficult to review the play without spoilers, but it is very strange and unusual.

Neil and Iona, a couple in their thirties, live in a house and have important jobs. They are tired of each other and never do anything together in their free time. However, everything changes when Iona's sister visits them without notice.

Ali Smith takes the play to a different level, and it feels like a meta concept. I think she investigates the boundaries of reality, illusions, dimensions and time in a really fascinating way. It is a wonderful play and I would have liked to see it, but reading it was also very interesting.

[Bart Van Overmeire · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lezen for Life boek nummer 2.
Sometimes only Ali Smith will do.

[Amy Alice · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bizarre.

[But_i_thought_ · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a delightful little play about a husband and wife, who are established in their comfortable daily routine, until, one day, unexpected visitors turn their lives upside down. These visitors are not who they seem at first.

The play becomes more absurd over time – eventually, one of the characters breaks down the fourth wall, peers out into the theatre audience, and wonders aloud who these people are. Interactions with members of the audience (some of whom enter the stage and join the story) lead to examinations of the nature of reality and dimensions of existence (are the audience members more "real" than the characters in the play, or vice versa?).

Part comedy, part philosophical enquiry, this was an entertaining two-hour read, and would surely be a cracker to watch live.

Mood: Satirical, absurd
Rating: 7/10

Also on Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/p/Bbv-NMynh...

[Harry McDonald · Rating 4 out of 5]

Soooo good. A weird, strange play that I'm tempted to say may read better than it would perform... Reminded me of Annie Baker in the way it sets about the self-destruction of its naturalism, but far more agressively, with a generous helping of Smith's distinct humour and warmth.

[Charlotte · Rating 4 out of 5]

of course ali smith doesn't just break the fourth wall, she creates an extra three and then kind of breaks all those as well. also has a gorgeous karaoke moment v similar to 'This Beautiful Future'.

[Louise Grr · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hilarious! The book is a script to a hilarious play that is set around a quirky and confused couple! Loved this and would read again.

[Joan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Brillante.

[Tim · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75

[Rosie · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars.

[Meg Deere · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've just recently fallen head over heels for Ali Smith's writing. She's clearly a novelist, so some of the theatrical conventions seem a little old, but her stage directions are beautiful. If this play was well-directed/performed, it could be a real treat.

[Makiko · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ok, this was pretty funny at the beginning.
When the conversation by Iona and Nick descended into quibbling, it sounded absurd and even annoying. I am glad I read this as a script because if I has seen this as a play I would be so irritated.

[Just · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well written entertaining play

[Glenn Johnson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed this quite a bit, very absurd but fun. 4 stars.

[Karly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ali Smith has a way with stories. They are simple, and comforting, yet entirely deep and complex at the same time. This play is no exception. I loved it.

[Carlos CRT · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a fun comedy of manners with the touch of the wonderful Ali Smith. (!)

[Silke · Rating 5 out of 5]

This play is no exception to my recently discovered love for Ali Smiths writing. It was pure delight, the characters so well portrayed and I highly recommend reading it. To everyone. Now.

[Tasbih Alsaeed · Rating 4 out of 5]

The most random thing I've ever read...I love it!!!