(Michael Billington’s article appeared in the Guardian, 5/5.)
"Satire," in the words of the Broadway showman George S Kaufman, "is what closes on Saturday night." But at least Lucy Prebble's Enron, with its satiric view of American capitalism, will make it through to this Sunday, when it closes prematurely at New York's Broadhurst Theatre. The news may be shocking, but it's not that surprising, given three factors. One is theatre critic Ben Brantley's obtuse and hostile review in the New York Times. Another is the aesthetic conservatism of a theatre culture that likes plays to be rooted in the realist tradition. I suspect there is also a lingering suspicion of a young British dramatist's right (Prebble is in her 20s) to tackle a profoundly American subject.
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