Sweet Bird of Youth by Katherine Weiss (Assistant Professor, Department of English, East Tennessee State University, California State University Los Angeles, USA)
Sweet Bird of Youth is Tennessee William's atmospheric play of 1959 about Chance Wayne, the one-time heart-throb of his hometown who returns hoping to break into the movies and find the girl he loved in his youth. Accompanied by faded movie star, Alexandra Del Lago, grieving in a haze of drugs and alcohol for her lost youth, he discovers that time is shortly to catch-up with him and wreak a terrible retribution for his past actions. In its exploration of corruption, ageing and the effects of time, the play offers a magnificent study of the dark side of the American dreams of youth and fame. This Student Edition provides an extensive introduction and notes by Katherine Weiss. The introduction includes a chronology of Williams' life and times, a summary of the plot, commentary on the characters, themes, language and context, and a production history of the play. Together with questions for further study and notes on words and phrases from the text, this is the essential edition of the play for students of literature and drama.