Synopsis
John Knowles' classic tale of two high-school boys standing on the threshold of war and adulthood comes to the stage. Gene Forrester is a careful, studious young man, full of fear of the future. As America is about to enter World War II, Gene attends summer school at Devon in New England. There he meets a remarkable young man whose love for life defies the reality of draft boards and battleships and challenges the adult world. This is Phineas, an exceptional athlete and a consummate charmer. The two become the best of friends, playing blitzball and jumping out of trees. It seems the perfect match until the fear in Gene and the world around him can no longer tolerate the life in Finny. The two face each other, both figuratively and literally, on a tree limb overlooking death, and Gene pushes. "My war ended before I ever put on a uniform," Gene says. "I was in active duty all my time at school; I killed my enemy there. Only Phineas never hated anyone." This is the story of both learning to face the world and face oneself. Although the era and anxiety belong to 1942, the search for a "special and separate peace" is timeless.
Notes
Limited Livestream Rights Available
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Status
In stock
- Type of Show Full-length Play
- Product Code S79000
- Cast Size 8
- Min. Royalty Rate $110/perf
- Cost $11.95
- Approx. Run Time 90 min
Categories
- Target Audience Young Audiences | High School | College and Adult | Family (all ages) | Senior Adults | Praise Groups
- Performing Group High School | College Theatre | Community Theatre | Professional Theatre | TYA | Touring Group | Praise Group | Dinner Theatre
- Genre Drama | Tragedy
- ISBN(13) 9780871299192
Customer Reviews
- "This play was a very strong adaptation from the book. It worked very well for a class consisting mostly of 16-17 year old males. There was a lot of good character delineation which made for strong and believable inner lifeÑand a believable story."
- Review by Sherry Weiss, Green Fields School, Tucson, Ariz.
- "This production was perfect for us. I am blessed to have a pool of talented teen males. This show provided a challenge for the guys; and, as a director, I was thrilled to have material that they really related to. We highly recommend this play. Our audiences were very moved by our production."
- Review by Trinity Bird, Bronson Community Foundation, Bronson, Mich.
Hints, Tips, and Tricks
- "The tree and its manageability was a big challenge for us. We ended up with a very sculptural tree, assembled from scrap metal pieces. It was symbolic of the war all around the young men."
- Tip by Sherry Weiss, Green Fields School, Tucson, AZ
