Great Lengths Great Lengths Seven Works of Marathon Theater jonathan kalb the university of michigan press ann arbor Copyright © Jonathan Kalb 2011 All rights reserved This book may not be reproduced,in whole or in part,including illustrations, in any form (beyond that copying permitted by Sections 107 and 108 ofthe U.S.Copyright Law and except by reviewers for the public press), without written permission from the publisher. Published in the United States ofAmerica by The University ofMichigan Press Manufactured in the United States ofAmerica cPrinted on acid-free paper 2014 2013 2012 2011 4 3 2 1 A CIP catalog record for this book is available from the British Library. Library ofCongress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Kalb,Jonathan. Great lengths :seven works ofmarathon theater / Jonathan Kalb. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. isbn978-0-472-11795-6 (cloth :acid-free paper) — isbn978-0-472-02776-7 (e-book) 1.Experimental theater. 2.Drama—History and criticism—Theory, etc. I.Title. pn2193.e86k35 2011 792.9'5—dc22 2011011851 for my mother and father Saundra Segan and Gerald Kalb acknowledgments The following people offered various forms of advice,assistance,and sup- port to this project,for which I am extremely grateful:Rustom Bharucha, Henning Bochert,Barbara Bosch,Una Chaudhuri,Peter Chelkowski,Sarah Cockburn, Elmar Engels, Mira Felner, Dan Gerould, Rob Gomes, Frank Hentschker,Jeffrey Horowitz,Samuel Leiter,Judith Milhous,Claudia Oren- stein, Theresa Rebeck, Nigel Redden, Mark Ringer, Alisa Solomon, Terry Stoller,Louisa Thompson,Vinson Valega,and Edwin Wilson.I am grateful as well to President Jennifer Raab and Provost Vita Rabinowitz of Hunter College for providing me writing time and travel funds,and to all the inter- viewees for the time and insights they generously offered.LeAnn Fields at University of Michigan Press has my warm appreciation for the unalloyed enthusiasm she expressed for the book from the beginning.Finally,for their many wise,loving,and perceptive comments,I thank my wife,Julie Heffer- nan, who read everything, including the ugly baby drafts, and Stanley Kauffmann,who,at age ninety-four,read the completed manuscript. Contents chapter one:Introduction 1 chapter two:Nicholas Nickleby 23 chapter three:The Mahabharata 45 chapter four:Angels in America 71 chapter five:Einstein on the Beach 97 chapter six:Quizoola!and Speak Bitterness 124 chapter seven:Faust I + II 158 chapter eight:Conclusion 189 Notes 193 Bibliography 213 Index 223