Intro & Act I, Scene I

Upon reading the introductory material in The Glass Menagerie I'm struck by all the intricacies in the set staging. There are several layers of the house that need to be shown as well as a fire escape, two alleyways, and a dance hall. All aspects are supposed to be washed in unrealistic light with gauzy, opaque curtains in between sections. Tom, the narrator/brother/son in the play explains outright to the audience that it is a memory play and people and things are not exactly as they were but merely as they are remembered. The setting is New Orleans during the depression. Every set piece is supposed to show the wear of years and hope lost with the dowturn of the economy.

In this first scene we meet Tom, Laura, and Amanda. Tom seems to be stubborn and outspoken about his distastes with his mother. I picture him almost a bit sarcastic at all times in a way that's either charming or completely obnoxious. Laura is quiet and helpful and small seeming. She keeps wanting to help her mother, Amanda, but Amanda denies her and continues busybodying. Amanda talks and talks and talks-most of the time saying more than needs to be said and with the central focus being on the past and herself. Amanda likes to tell people what to do and also wants good things for both Tom and Laura it seems. In this scene she's particularly intent on keeping Laura "fresh and pretty" for the gentleman callers that she expects at any moment. Tom and Laura seem to have an understanding that these men, just waiting to whisk Laura away, do not exist in their current present. There is an air of discomfort throughout the scene as the children and Amanda seem to have totally different points of view.