Dr. Magic Six One Act Plays

By Joyce Carol Oates

Homesick: A duet for voices, this drama with undertones of black comedy introduces Pinktoes, a woman who has been murdered in a desolate area of Texas by Mr. America, a serial killer. Pinktoes speaks from beyond the grave without sentiment or self-pity while Mr. America speaks from prison. Each is an eloquent variant of American archetypical primitive innocence.** Dr. Magic: The charismatic magician Dr. Magic hynotizes a young married couple and instructs them to perform hilarious, startling and ultimately disturbing feats. In an unexpected reversal, the blundering, comical amateur couple triumphs over the enigmatic stage pro while confirming the power of their love. ** Here She Is!: In this satire of American dreams and stereotypes, a woman of forty-four finds herself unaccountably completing in the Miss America Pageant. All of the legitimate contestants disqualify themselves and the pace shifts from comedy to fast-paced farce when the traditional introduction of the newly crowned winner resounds.** Negative: Mary and Veronica are roommates at a fictitious American college where racial stereotypes are reversed. Caucasian Mary belongs to the minority race and black Veronica is a smugly altruistic representative of the majority. In the guise of friendliness, Veronica exploits and finally exhausts Mary while remaining oblivious of her own motives. ** The Adoption: Dark comedic undertones color this tale about a married couple at a mysterious adoptation agency. Although they want a baby, they bravely agree to adopt an eight-year-old Third World child who appears to be deformed or disfigured. They learn he has siblings and are faced with an even more difficult decision, one that leaves them shaken and exposed. This fast-paced exploration of serious contemporary issues offers incisive satire that never becomes harsh or judgmental.**When I Was a Little Girl and My Mother Didn't Want Me: An elderly woman relates in blank verse the story of her childhood as a part of an immigrant Hungarian family in America.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0573601844
• ISBN13: 9780573601842
• Release Date: December 2004
• Publisher: Samuel French
• Length: 94 Pages
• Weight: 0.05 lbs.
• Dimensions: 5.3" x 8.3"