Overview

WINNER! 2007 Susan Smith Blackburn Prize

God's Ear marks the debut of Jenny Schwartz, "an indelibly clever playwright, possessed of linguistic playfulness and a lively sense of rhythm" (The Village Voice). Through the skillfully disarming use of clichéd language and homilies, the play explores with subtle grace and depth the way the death of a child tears one family apart, while showcasing the talents of a promising young playwright who "in [a] very modern way [is] making a rather old-fashioned case for the power of the written word" (The New York Times).

A husband and wife have trouble coping with the loss of their son, they find themselves speaking in cliches and the husband travels to forget. The wife stays with their daughter and the tooth fairy and tries to figure out how to cope from home.

Keywords

• Death
• Illness/Health
• Love
• Marriage
• Memory
• Susan Smith Blackburn Prize