''Botticelli'' is a one-act play written by

Terrence McNally Terrence McNally (November 3, 1938 – March 24, 2020) was an American playwright, librettist, and screenwriter. Described as "the bard of American theater" and "one of the greatest contemporary playwrights the theater world has yet produced," ...

, initially broadcast on television in 1968.

Productions

''Botticelli'' was first broadcast by Channel Thirteen in New York City on March 14 and 15, 1968, on the television show ''New York Television Theatre''. ''Botticelli'' was one of three one-act plays, under the overall title of ''Apple Pie'' (the other two were ''Tour'' and ''Next''), which focused on the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...

. It was directed by

Glenn Jordan Glenn Jordan (born April 5, 1936) is a retired American television director and producer. Born in San Antonio, Texas, Jordan directed multiple episodes of ''Family'' and helmed numerous television movies, several based on real persons as divers ...

and starred Kevin O'Connor and

Roy London Roy London (March 3, 1943 – August 8, 1993) was an American actor, acting coach and teacher. Early life London was born and raised on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, New York City. A math prodigy at age five, London was on the radio show, ...

. ''Botticelli'' was presented on stage at the outdoor Theatricum Botanicum, Topanga Canyon, California in July and August 1986.

Overview

During the

, two soldiers wait in the jungle to kill an enemy Vietcong fighter. While they wait they play the game of

Botticelli Alessandro di Mariano di Vanni Filipepi ( – May 17, 1510), known as Sandro Botticelli (, ), was an Italian painter of the Early Renaissance. Botticelli's posthumous reputation suffered until the late 19th century, when he was rediscovered ...

. The enemy appears and the soldiers kill him, all the while continuing to play the game. The civilized and cultured nature of the game contrasts ironically with the brutal indifference of war.

Critical response

George Gent, in his review for ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' wrote that ''Botticelli'' was the "most successful in purely dramatic terms" of the three plays. He further commented that the play shows a "chilling comment on the inhumanity of war." Toby Silverman Zinman in her book ''McNally: A Casebook'' wrote that ''Botticelli'' shows McNally's "virtuosity as a playwright", but that "the target is again neither sufficiently sharp nor compelling." Peter Wolfe points out that "McNally's early work features many recurring elements: the Vietnamese war of ''Botticelli'' (1968), ''Witness'' (1968) and ''Bringing It All Back Home'' (1969)."Wolfe, Peter. "Chapter Three", ''The Theater of Terrence McNally: A Critical Study'', McFarland, 2013, , p. 55

References

External links

Botticelli by Terrence McNally at Google Books
Plays by Terrence McNally 1968 plays One-act plays Plays about the Vietnam War

Productions

Overview

Critical response

References

Further reading

External links