|
TORCH SONG TRILOGY | |
| What is a | |
| PRODUCTION HISTORY | Torch Song? |
| AWARDS |  |
| CRITICAL REVIEWS | |
| PHOTOS FROM MOVIE | |
A "torch song" is usually a ballad that expresses woe, joy, or some other extreme emotion. It often falls in the category of jazz music, and tends to contain a sentimentality that is concomitant with the styles of the "torch singers". For some reason or another, by some phenomena unexplained by scientists but played around with by psychologists, "torch songs" tend to strike a chord (pun intended) with homosexual audiences. Perhaps this is why Harvey Fierstein decided to name the combination of three homosexual plays "Torch Song Trilogy." The three plays embody homosexual themes such as hate crimes, love affairs, and coming out, and center around Arnold, the stereotypical overly-sentimental gay man. Here is a list of several "torch songs" and "torch singers" that you may recognize:
|
|
| Cry Me a River - Julie London |
| Black Coffee - Sarah Vaughan |
| Stormy Blues - Billie Holiday |
| I'm Getting Sentimental Over You - Ella Fitzgerald |
| But Not For Me - Judy Garland |
| Stormy Weather - Lena Home |
| Come Rain or Shine - Marlene Dietrich |
| Smoke Gets in Your Eyes - Eartha Kitt |
| La Vie En Rose - Edith Piaf |
| At Last - Etta James |
| Since I Fell For You - Nina Simone |
| What a Diff'rence a Day Makes - Dinah Washington |
| I Got it Bad and That Ain't Good - Carmen McRae |
| Soul on Fire - LaVern Baker |
| I'll Wait for You - Ruth Brown |
|
Author's Note (by Mr. Fierstein in Samuel French play version) I have been blessed with seven honest, earnest, free-tongued characters who, within these pages, willingly impart more of themselves to you than the closest friends would ever dare. I will therefore leave them to their story-telling with the briefest of Parental Guidance. Like a gaudy East Indian purse; outrageous in color, embroidered in cliche design, the worth of these plays lies ultimately in the tiny mirrors woven into the fabric wherein we catch our reflections. Perhaps you'll see a little of yourself on the phone with Arnold's "Why don't you love me anymore" call. Or maybe find yourself in Laurel's "Just because I said that's what I want doesn't mean that I'm ready for it" logic. Or it might be while reading Mrs. Beckoff you'll stop and smile, "That's my Mother." Any little thing that makes you feel less alone is what and why these plays are. Not one of the characters you'll meet is "right". There are no answers forthcoming. But like an old familiar half heard song playing on a jukebox you might just catch a lone that reaches our and touches something going on inside of you. And for that instant you are relieved of the isolation. That is the worth of a Torch Song. That is the goal of these plays. |
HOME