Family Ties That Bind and Gag

This is the title of a book by Erma Bombeck that takes a comedic look inside a "normal" family. I thought about this book Friday night while watching August: Osage County. The play was a tragicomedy based on a completely dysfunctional family. Talking to people during and after the play, it was obvious that there was a little bit of all of us in the characters onstage. Most everyone has skeletons in the closet, be it an alcoholic uncle, a reclusive cousin, or a borderline psychotic niece. It's an eye opener when you see these traits portrayed to an extreme. Erma Bombeck takes it to a laughable place describing toddlers throwing things in the toilet, sisters who have to do the one up thing, and husbands who vegetate in front of the TV for so long the family decorates him for Christmas. The play takes it to the other extreme with a drug addicted mother, alcoholic father, and daughters who do their best to escape the situtations at home. Watching the interaction between the characters was funny in a dark way. They spent a lot of time screaming profanity at each other, pulling hair, and bringing out the secrets in a public way. Although the story is a tragedy, the writing is absolutely hilarious. The script is well written, without being overdone and the actors were able to convey the emotions in an amazing manner. I consider myself lucky to have seen this production and will be taking my mom and sister-in-law to see it before it closes.