George's Final Response to the "Play Formerly Known as Love, Candy"

Hey gals,

Great work this semester. It's been exciting to watch the play develop in your capable hands. Your classes have been so structured and targeted - kudos to you both.

Here's my thoughts/comments/opinions/questions in no particular order:

- The questions that pull me through the play are “will Candy be successful in her quest to become a woman?” and “how did she meet Andy Warhol?” and "how did she become famous?"

- because I don't know the details of Candy's life, the non-linear method of storytelling in the play can be confusing at times. I applaud your instinct to avoid structuring the play so that it climaxes with her interaction with Warhol (they typical VHI version of the story), but at the same time, avoiding this more obvious choice leaves me feeling driftless at times, unsure of what climax I am headed toward.

- I may have said this before, but I'm most engaged when the story is most specific (EZ Bake Oven) and less general (the "lecturish" stuff)

- I wonder if the play might kick off with more of a bang somehow - watching it I felt there was a need for something to kick things off - part of this was Simon's performance, but the play in peformance seemed to get off to a slow start. Talk to me about this and I will make more sense (hopefully).

- as I think I said in class, I'm a little confused by the framing device in the play - Andy and his assistant seem to be the gods of the play at the beginning, but then they somewhat disappear into other characters (and I don't feel them behind those characters, they seem like different characters).

- I really loved the caring nurse character that showed up in class last week - I think that's worth pursuing. Could she be the mom as well? And simply dividing the lines you'd already written carries a lot of potential - might be a way to control the Warhol presence in the play if he is presented as a part of Candy's persona, i.e., her desire for fame, etc. Worth exploring, I think.

That's all for now, but please feel free to ask me any questions you might have. I think you're on the brink of something very exciting and wish you continued experimentation and exploration of all the possibilities this play has to offer!

Oh, and I'm fine with the title as well.