Quartett: An Amazing Play

"La mort d`une prostituée . Maintenant nous sommes seuls . Cancer mon amour." I have found myself to be saying these words constantly in my head for four days now. The last lines of the play, stating "Death of a whore. Now we're alone. Cancer my love", left me wanting to see so much more. There are so many things I loved about this play. The use of French was probably my favorite part about the play. Others found it annoying to have to constantly shift from the subtitles back to the characters on stage. While I was a bit confused in the beginning having to do this very same act, I began to appreciate the French so much more. The play was obviously centered around sex. Therefore, I do not think the same feeling would have been captured if the play was spoken in English. The French language is known for being the language of romance, and that title is proven in the play. The way the words flew off of Valmont's (the woman) tongue was mesmerizing. I adored the way she began to speed up her words, then slow all the way down until she paused in the middle of a sentence, then slowly finished it. I learned to balance throughout the play looking at the subtitles and looking at the characters, and it became fun for me to watch. My second favorite aspect of the play was the use of vibrant and rich colors. From the purple dress, to the red suit, the lime green nightdress, and even the white all stood out on stage. I loved "Valmont's" one sleeved long dress, and how she would take small and quick steps to get across the stage. The colors of their clothes only added to the drama of the play, including the lighting, the make-up of the characters, the moving objects, and even the random outbursts such as "VENEGANCE!!!!!!!!!" I found shocking some of the lines they said in this play. I actually had to copy some of them down. Sex completely corrupted the minds of the characters who stated "Innocence- a rosy instrument of Hell," "The deepest fall into Hell is from the height of innocence," "You have less to lose than a virgin," and "If you want to know God, trust the trembling of your thighs. Let only a patch of skin keep us apart." However, at the end, I almost felt for the uncle, who wished he was a woman so he wouldn't have to go through the feelings and temptations that he does as a man. I am still very confused on the characters and who was playing who at what time, but that is a reason why I would love to see this play again.