The Vertical Hour
A Play
ISBN10: 0865479658
ISBN13: 9780865479654
Trade Paperback
128 Pages
$16.00
"Politics is about the reconciliation of the irreconcilable," says Nadia Blye, a young American war reporter turned academic who teaches political studies at Yale. With her faith in academia beginning to erode and memories from her time in the Balkans and the Middle East haunting her, Nadia travels with her boyfriend, Philip Lucas, to rural England to visit her father, Oliver, who has his own past to reckon with. The challenge of Nadia's encounter with Oliver forces decisions on her that will affect her for the rest of her life.
For thirty-five years, David Hare has written plays that capture the flavor of our times and address the interconnection between our secret motives and our public politics. In The Vertical Hour, he continues his investigation of the morality of international intervention, and of how the war in Iraq impacts the lives of British and American citizens.
Reviews
Praise for The Vertical Hour
"Hare's smart . . . new drama . . . [is] intellectually bracing and, at times, emotionally resonant."—Julia M. Klein, The Chronicle of Higher Education
"Richly stimulating . . . Hare's play engages the heart and mind . . . [The Vertical Hour] raises a raft of fascinating issues. Iraq obviously dominates. But a whole range of ideas emerges from Hare's hyperactive brain. What, for example, do we mean by patriotism? Is it simply a button conveniently pressed by beleaguered politicians?"—Michael Billington, The Guardian (UK)