A review by ryryreadsbooks23
Buried Child by Sam Shepard

dark funny mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

The classic structure of an American family harboring a secret, just with Shepard's postmodern swings at structure and genre. The character that interrupts the narrative enters Act II and then leaves after said Act, only to return inebriated in Act III, stumbling into an inheritance. Realism is picked at with a kind of 24-hour harvest cycle. There is a purpose behind Tilden entering with corn, then carrots, and then a buried child. Navigating a love for Shepard's work is that kinda thing where you have to remind yourself his character's actions are not his own. Shelly being cornered by Bradley is uncomfortable but there for a reason. Shepard emasculates the men by having them perform masculinity. That's why it's so funny when Halie comes back home in Act III and all the men revert to little boys that need a good scolding. It's crazy this lasted on Broadway with its themes of deconstructing the nuclear family. When the minister leaves at the end of the play, did no one catch that ideas of God are invalid in this brutal country with buried secrets?