Curt is a small-town cop in the Midwest; Sandy is the nineteen-year-old prostitute he first tries to arrest, then attempts to help, at the cost of his badge. What Rebecca Gilman makes of this familiar scenario is something startlingly real and compelling, delving deeply into the small space that can divide a feeling of hope from one of hopelessness, as Curt and Sandy both try to get a foothold in the American dream of a house, a job, a life, a relationship with another human being. Gilman's previous play, Boy Gets Girl , was acclaimed by Time magazine as the best play of 2000, saying that "with Spinning into Butter , her play about race relations on campus, Rebecca Gilman gave notice that she was a playwright to watch. And with this intense drama of a woman's encounter with a stalker, she became one to hail . . . It's not just a gripping play but also an important one." Marked by Gilman's characteristically sharp delineation of character, pitch-perfect dialogue, and effortless use of humor that is both biting and silly, Blue Surge is a worthy successor to these plays--an intimate look at the class struggle in America today as well as a brilliant example of the dramatic craft from one of today's most accomplished practitioners. It will have its world premiere at the Goodman Theatre in Chicago in the spring of 2001. Gilman's young playwriting career continues to strengthen and improve as she stretches beyond her familiar Spinning into Butter (LJ 7/00) and the shocking The Glory of Living (Faber & Faber, 2001) into a larger world. Gilman's previous plays have received numerous awards and accolades, and this work should be no different. At once a romance, a comedy, and a tragedy, Blue Surge offers a penetrating look at class struggle and at women's issues. This lean play of two acts and five actors moves quickly and leaves no winners in the reality of life. Curt is a small-town cop who tries to arrest Sandy, a prostitute. He fails in the arrest and then he fails in his attempts to help her and himself. One of the most poignant scenes occurs when Curt and his upper-class fianc e argue about the morality of arresting prostitutes. Beth is making fun of the family restaurant located next door to the massage parlor that Curt and his fellow policemen are trying to shut down. Curt argues that, just because the restaurant is not up to her high standards, the families that use it shouldn't have to be subjected to a massage parlor next door. Beth says, "Okay then. Places that put something besides iceberg lettuce in the salads." To which Curt responds, "I like iceberg lettuce." This great work by an upcoming playwright is recommended for public and academic libraries. J. Sara Paulk, Coastal Plain Regional Lib., Tifton, GA Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc. Chicago-based Gilman emerged in the mid-90s with a tightly written thriller, The Glory of Living , about a fascinating pair of sociopaths who, a la Natural Born Killers , go on a murderous spree. In the years since, Gilman has wandered away from her initial noirish style to craft plays that, despite such serious themes as racism, stalking, and sexual harassment, retain a certain comic lightness. Blue Surge , which premiered at Chicago's Goodman Theater in July 2001, returns to the sleazy milieu of her first triumph but deals with it in the light manner of her Spinning into Butter and Boy Gets Girl . A pair of cops become emotionally enmeshed in the lives of a couple of massage therapists who hook on the side. Or are they hookers who do massage on the side? The play includes passages of astonishing dramatic power, and the first quarter of the play is particularly strong. Gilman's gift for believable dialogue remains, but a glib, TV-melodrama ending mars what might have been a much stronger play. Jack Helbig Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved “Remarkable...Gilman is--quite unabashedly--an old-school dramatist,conjuring recognizable characters and situations.... She does not think theater should be a metaphor for life or a poetic expression of life, but rather that it should BE life.” ― Joanne Kaufman, New York “A new play about a policeman and a prostitute--and the dead-end lives they both face--by a 'writer of surprising gifts'.” ― Chicago Tribune Rebecca Gilman is the author of the play The Glory of Living , which received the 1998 American Theater Critics Association's Osborn Award. She is the recipient of the Roger L. Stevens Award from the Kennedy Center Fund for New American Plays, the George Devine Award, the Evening Standard Award for Most Promising Playwright, the Scott McPherson Award, and an Illinois Arts Council playwriting fellowship. A native of Alabama, Ms. Gilman lives in Chicago, Illinois. Used Book in Good Condition