The Last Yankee
Encyclopedia
The Last Yankee is a play by Arthur Miller
, which premiered on January 05, 1993 at the Manhattan Theatre Club
in New York City
. The cast included Tom Aldredge
as John Frick, Frances Conroy
as Patricia Hamilton, Rose Gregorio
as Karen Frick, John Heard as Leroy Hamilton, and Charlotte Maier as the Patient. The play had been performed previously in a much shorter version two years earlier.
. Patricia Hamilton is recovering from depression, and this may be the day she feels strong enough to go home. But a visit from her husband Leroy, a descendant of one of America's founding fathers (but referred to as a "Swamp Yankee
"), coincides with that of a successful businessman, John Frick, who has come to see his newly-admitted wife, Karen. A clash of values and emotions upsets them all.
It is a play in two parts which focuses on the relationships of two couples - Leroy and Patricia Hamilton, married many years with seven children, and John and Karen Frick, a childless couple. Both women are patients at a mental institution, and act one sees the two men meet for the first time in the waiting room on visitors day. Karen has not long been institutionalised, and Frick is having a difficult time coping with her mental illness, while Patricia has been in and out of institutions for many years. The two men struggle to communicate under the circumstances, though even this breaks down in the face of their respective situations. Patricia and Karen have become friendly during their time together in the ward, and act two sees the four characters brought together inside, where a picture emerges of a society whose members feel obscurely cheated and where success is equated with failure. `A short piece in length, but a miniature masterpiece.
Arthur Miller
Arthur Asher Miller was an American playwright and essayist. He was a prominent figure in American theatre, writing dramas that include plays such as All My Sons , Death of a Salesman , The Crucible , and A View from the Bridge .Miller was often in the public eye,...
, which premiered on January 05, 1993 at the Manhattan Theatre Club
Manhattan Theatre Club
Manhattan Theatre Club is a theater company located in New York City. Under the leadership of Artistic Director Lynne Meadow and Executive Producer Barry Grove, Manhattan Theatre Club has grown since its founding in 1970 from an Off-Off Broadway showcase into one of the country’s most acclaimed...
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. The cast included Tom Aldredge
Tom Aldredge
Thomas Ernest "Tom" Aldredge was an American television, film and stage actor.-Life and career:Aldredge was born in Dayton, Ohio, the son of Lucienne Juliet and W. J. Aldredge, a colonel in the United States Army Air Corps...
as John Frick, Frances Conroy
Frances Conroy
Frances Conroy is an American actress. She is best known for playing Ruth, the matriarch of the Fisher family, on Six Feet Under, which earned her a Golden Globe and a Screen Actors Guild Award.-Early life:...
as Patricia Hamilton, Rose Gregorio
Rose Gregorio
Rose Gregorio is an American character actress. She began her career appearing mostly in theatre in Chicago and New York City during the 1950s and 1960s. During the 1970s she became more active in television and film, appearing mostly in supporting roles...
as Karen Frick, John Heard as Leroy Hamilton, and Charlotte Maier as the Patient. The play had been performed previously in a much shorter version two years earlier.
Synopsis
The Last Yankee takes place in a present-day state mental hospital, located somewhere in New EnglandNew England
New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...
. Patricia Hamilton is recovering from depression, and this may be the day she feels strong enough to go home. But a visit from her husband Leroy, a descendant of one of America's founding fathers (but referred to as a "Swamp Yankee
Swamp Yankee
Swamp Yankee is a colloquialism that has a variety of meanings. Generally, it refers to Yankees or WASPs from rural Rhode Island and nearby eastern Connecticut and southeastern Massachusetts...
"), coincides with that of a successful businessman, John Frick, who has come to see his newly-admitted wife, Karen. A clash of values and emotions upsets them all.
It is a play in two parts which focuses on the relationships of two couples - Leroy and Patricia Hamilton, married many years with seven children, and John and Karen Frick, a childless couple. Both women are patients at a mental institution, and act one sees the two men meet for the first time in the waiting room on visitors day. Karen has not long been institutionalised, and Frick is having a difficult time coping with her mental illness, while Patricia has been in and out of institutions for many years. The two men struggle to communicate under the circumstances, though even this breaks down in the face of their respective situations. Patricia and Karen have become friendly during their time together in the ward, and act two sees the four characters brought together inside, where a picture emerges of a society whose members feel obscurely cheated and where success is equated with failure. `A short piece in length, but a miniature masterpiece.
See also
- Arthur MillerArthur MillerArthur Asher Miller was an American playwright and essayist. He was a prominent figure in American theatre, writing dramas that include plays such as All My Sons , Death of a Salesman , The Crucible , and A View from the Bridge .Miller was often in the public eye,...
- YankeeYankeeThe term Yankee has several interrelated and often pejorative meanings, usually referring to people originating in the northeastern United States, or still more narrowly New England, where application of the term is largely restricted to descendants of the English settlers of the region.The...
- Swamp YankeeSwamp YankeeSwamp Yankee is a colloquialism that has a variety of meanings. Generally, it refers to Yankees or WASPs from rural Rhode Island and nearby eastern Connecticut and southeastern Massachusetts...