The Long Depression

Long Day's Journey Into Night
Is Chock Full of Great Performances

by Blase DiStefano

Alcoholism, dope dependency, tuberculosis—all afflictions of the four characters in Eugene O'Neill's play Long Day's Journey Into Night, presently showing at Houston's Alley Theatre [March 1998]. If watched with the knowledge that the action takes place in 1912, one can at least understand why this dysfunctional family is at a loss as to how to handle their predicament. But who wants to listen to this depressing quartet rattle incessantly about how life used to be and should have been?

Well, I may not have wanted to LISTEN to Mom, Dad, and the two boys' relentless chatter, but I sure as hell enjoyed WATCHING them. After all, we are talking about Ellen Burstyn, goddess of stage and screen, who as the morphine-induced Mary Tyrone, is mesmerizing; and David Selby, star of the TV soaps Dark Shadows and Falcon Crest, who as the alcoholic husband whose miserly ways color the entire family's way of life, is superb. The two young actors, Ian Kahn and Rick Stear, who play the couple's sons, are effective and seem exceptionally comfortable on stage.

Hey, even if the subject matter leans toward the dark side (oh, OK, so it takes a flying LEAP into the dark side), the performances brightly shine through.

Interview With Ellen Burstyn & David Selby

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