Seascape is a two-act play by American playwright Edward Albee. He completed it in 1974, having first developed it in 1967 as a short play named Life, the first half of a projected double bill with another play called Death (which later became All Over).Gussow, Mel. Edward Albee: A Singular Journey, New York: Simon and Schuster, 1999, pp. 288–289. Seascape won the 1975 Pulitzer Prize for Drama.
Productions The play started on Broadway at the Sam S. Shubert Theatre on January 26, 1975, and closed on March 22, 1975, after 65 performances. Directed by Albee, the cast starred Deborah Kerr (Nancy), Barry Nelson (Charlie), Maureen Anderman (Sarah) and Frank Langella (Leslie). Langella won the 1975 Tony Award, Featured Actor in a Play. The play was nominated for the 1975 Tony Award, Play and Lighting Design (Play or Musical) (James Tilton)."'Seascape' 1975" playbillvault.com, accessed November 20, 2015Hernandez, Ernio. "PLAYBILL ARCHIVES: 'Seascape' — 1975" Playbill,November 21, 2005
The original three-act version of the play ran in Europe. Albee "jettisoned a large section of the play" during the out of town tryout in Baltimore, prior to the Broadway premiere.Gussow, Mel. "Recalling Evolution of 'Seascape' Play, Albee Sees Tale Not of Lizard, but of Life" New York Times, January 21, 1975
Albee received his second Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1975 for the play."Pulitzer Prize for Drama" pulitzer.org, accessed November 20, 2015
Seascape was revived on Broadway by Lincoln Center Theater at the Booth Theatre on October 28, 2005 (previews) and closed on January 8, 2006, after 27 previews and 55 performances. Directed by Mark Lamos, the cast starred George Grizzard (Charlie), Frances Sternhagen (Nancy), Elizabeth Marvel (Sarah), and Frederick Weller (Leslie). The sets were by Michael Yeargan, costumes by Catherine Zuber, and lighting by Peter Kaczorowski."'Seascape' 2005" playbillvault.com, accessed November 20, 2015
The original three-act version received its American premiere in Boston in a production by Zeitgeist Stage Company at the Boston Center for the Arts Plaza Theater in October 2008 through a special arrangement with the playwright.Shea, Andrea. "Just Add Water and a Classic Albee Play Resurfaces," WBUR, October 6, 2008 https://www.wbur.org/2008/10/06/just-add-water-and-a-classic-albee-play-resurfaces The director was David J. Miller, with lights by Jeff Adelberg, costumes by Fabian Aguilar, fights & movement by Meron Langsner, and sound by Walter Eduardo. The cast consisted of Michelle Dowd as Nancy (who won an IRNE Award for Best Actress for the role), Peter Brown as Charlie, Claude Del as Leslie, and Emma Goodman as Sarah. The original second act is set entirely underwater.
Overview Like many of Albee's plays, Seascape focuses on communication in interpersonal relationships, in this case between couples. Albee's first Broadway play, Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1962), and his first Pulitzer Prize-winning play, A Delicate Balance (1966), are also concerned with this topic. Seascape is different from these dramas on several counts. Seascape is not strictly a drama but, according to various critics, has elements of comedy, fantasy, satire and absurdism.
In Seascape, Nancy and Charlie, an American couple on the verge of the major life change of retirement, are having problems in their relationship. They are discussing these matters on the beach when another couple appears, two human-sized lizards named Leslie and Sarah who speak and act like people. The lizards have evolved to such a degree that they no longer feel at home in the sea and are compelled to seek life on the land. What the lizards experience with Nancy and Charlie nearly drives them back to the sea, but with an offer of help from the human couple, they decide to stay.
This relatively happy ending is not common in many of Albee's previous plays, and some critics find it refreshing. Before Albee won the Pulitzer Prize for drama for Seascape, however, many critics reacted negatively to the first production. Only a few had generally positive responses. One was Clive Barnes of The New York Times who writes, "What Mr. Albee has given us here is a play of great density, with many interesting emotional and intellectual reverberations." The Nation's Harold Clurman places Seascape in a positive context in terms of Albee's development as a playwright. He believes, "It is his most relaxed play, a 'philosophical' whimsy."
The nod to absurdism is not only found in having half the cast being human/lizards but also in a few staging elements. For example, several times throughout the play a jet flies above, and each time Nancy and Charlie repeat the same dialog for two or three lines.
Summary
Act I Seascape opens on a beach. An older couple, Nancy and Charlie, has finished a picnic lunch. As Nancy cleans up, the noise of a jet flying low engulfs the stage. Charlie predicts that a jet will someday smash into a dune.
Nancy expresses her desire to be near the water forever. She loves everything about it and would like to travel from beach to beach. Charlie responds negatively to her dreams. He does not want to do anything or go anywhere.
Charlie's attitude angers Nancy. She points out that life is short. She threatens to have adventures on her own. Charlie's attitude changes after Nancy's outburst, and she retreats from her plan a bit. She is content to enjoy the moment.
After another jet passes by, Nancy reminds Charlie about his childhood desire to live under the water. Charlie tells her how he would sink to the bottom of a pool or lake and sit there until he had to breathe. Nancy encourages him to do this again and get in touch with his youth. Charlie refuses, embarrassed by her insistence.
Nancy changes the subject to their sex life. She tells him about a time in their marriage when she thought of divorcing him. There was tension, and she suspected that he was having an affair. Charlie denies this, and Nancy accepts his word.
Nancy encourages him to sink under the water again and to show her how he did it. Charlie again refuses and turns the conversation to her. He tells her that she was a good wife. Nancy says the same about him, listing the many ways in which he was a good husband. When she is done, she is bitter because the "good life" they have had seems limited to her. Charlie is hurt by her attitude. They argue. Nancy is still angry that his only interest is to rest, while she wants to experience new things.
During a pause at the end of their heated argument, Leslie, a human-sized male lizard, takes a peek at them. Nancy tries to get Charlie to help write postcards, but he declines. Leslie peeks at them again, this time with his female mate, Sarah. Nancy sees the lizards and is intrigued. Charlie is afraid.
Charlie demands that Nancy find him something to defend them with. When she can only find a small, thin stick, Charlie is peeved. Nancy remains interested in the lizards, but when Leslie clears his throat, she fears the lizards might hurt them.
When Leslie waves his large stick, Nancy and Charlie admit their love for each other, Nancy more reluctantly than Charlie. As Leslie and Sarah move forward, another jet flies by and scares them away. Charlie tries to blame the whole episode on bad liver paste sandwiches. He believes they are dead from food poisoning. Nancy ridicules the idea.
Nancy is pleased when Leslie and Sarah return. To protect themselves, Nancy believes they should show submission by lying on their backs with their legs and arms up, as a dog would. Charlie assumes the position, though with great reluctance.
Act II
Act II opens where act I ended. Leslie and Sarah are unsure about Nancy and Charlie's submissive stance. When Leslie and Sarah approach, Charlie threatens to scream. Nancy is much calmer. Leslie pokes Charlie and Nancy in the side, but neither one moves. Leslie and Sarah decide that Nancy and Charlie are relatively harmless.
Charlie is unsure about the creatures, while Nancy is fascinated by everything about them. Leslie and Sarah decide to approach them again. Leslie pokes Charlie hard, causing Charlie to speak. Leslie replies several times, but Charlie will not speak to the creature. Nancy finally sits up and greets Sarah. Charlie only says hello after Nancy encourages him.
Sarah and Nancy believe that the tension has been defused, but Leslie and Charlie are still uncertain of each other. With Nancy's prodding, Charlie assures Leslie that they are not unfriendly. Though Leslie and Sarah speak English, they do not understand many of the words and ideas that Charlie and Nancy use.
Nancy tries to shake Leslie's flipper, but Leslie cannot grasp the concept. Nancy and Charlie explain the concept of the handshake, as well as their differing anatomy. The lizards have only legs and flippers. Nancy finally shakes hands with the lizards. Charlie tries to shake hands with Leslie, but Leslie is still uncertain about him. Leslie and Charlie talk about their differences. Leslie asks about their clothing. Among other things, Nancy tells them that clothes cover their sexual organs.
This leads to a discussion of the humans' sex organs, especially Nancy's breasts. The lizards do not have these organs. Nancy shows Sarah, who is fascinated. Leslie also wants to see, but Charlie is uncomfortable with the idea. To change the subject, Charlie asks about their children. Sarah and Leslie have produced seven thousand eggs. Leslie is appalled when he learns that the humans do not lay eggs. Nancy explains human gestation and that they have three children.
When Nancy tells them that they keep their children for many years, she also explains the concept of love. This and all other emotions are foreign concepts to the lizards. Charlie asks how Sarah and Leslie became paired. Leslie fought off other lizards when Sarah reached her maturity and started to mate. He wanted her, but emotions did not play a role.
Charlie brings up the idea of disloyalty in Leslie and Sarah's relationship. This upsets Nancy. The issue also confuses Sarah and Leslie. Charlie is nearly attacked by Leslie when he angrily compares the male lizard to a fish. The women calm the men down and Leslie explains his disdainful attitude toward fish. They discuss the ideas of prejudice and difference.
Sarah looks up and sees birds flying by. Leslie becomes defensive. Nancy explains to Sarah that the birds are seagulls. The females compare them to underwater rays. Nancy tells Sarah that she has seen photographs of rays. Nancy and Charlie cannot explain what photography is to her, so Sarah believes they are insulting her. When Leslie returns, Sarah explains what has happened.
Abruptly changing the subject, Nancy declares that Charlie believes that they are dead. She continues to dig into Charlie, sarcastically saying that no wonders are possible. Leslie and Sarah catch on to her meaning, to some degree, but Leslie is confused by the idea that reality is an illusion. When Leslie asks Charlie to explain it, Charlie becomes angry.
After Nancy calms him down, another jet flies by. Leslie and Sarah are fearful. Nancy and Charlie explain the idea of the airplane. Charlie talks about other machines including those that go undersea. Nancy tells the lizards about the times in Charlie's youth when he would sink under water and stay there. Angry at Nancy, Charlie changes the subject and asks the lizards why they came out of the sea in the first place. They do not know, other than they have changed somehow and do not belong there anymore.
This prompts Charlie to explain the idea of evolution, but Leslie and Sarah do not understand it fully. The lizards can only think in terms of themselves. When Sarah asks if progress is good, Charlie is uncertain. Every term and idea has to be explained to the lizards, leading to more frustration for Charlie, as well as Leslie and Sarah.