Event

T.S. Eliot's "The Waste Land"

Written by T.S. Eliot in the midst and aftermath of civilizational and personal upheaval, "The Waste Land" is a dramatic and bitter meditation on social catastrophe. The Straddler's staging of "The Waste Land"--performed by an African American Tiresias, an overeager nautical sidekick, and a seedy musician--combines elements of vaudeville, melodrama, and the minstrel show as it explores the comedy and absurdity of a text that continues to illuminate our times.

Reflective of the The Straddler's interdisciplinary approach, the production builds upon an essay in the fall2008 issue of the company's literary magazine, "Send up da Clowns: The Waste Land."

T.S. Eliot's "The Waste Land"
with Carol Thomas, Todd Pate and Greg Bennetts
directed by Dan Monaco

About The Straddler
The Straddler is an interdisciplinary organization founded in 2007 with the intent of examining and transforming contemporary culture. The company's literary magazine (and namesake), The Straddler, is published twice a year and has been hailed as "a venue of intellectual security for those who have been starving for writing that is dangerous...and unapologetic." (NewPages) Looking as much to the past as to the present for insights into an age where repetition and cultural diminishment are the norm, The Straddler sifts through illuminated bits of western and American culture. Pieced together, The Straddler believes these fragments offer images of the potential for a more dignified cultural future.