Poof!

by Lynn Nottage

One act play with two woman. Takes a humorous view of family abuse.

Genres: Plays, Drama, Read For School, School, Abuse

First published January 1, 1997

About the author

Lynn Nottage is an American playwright whose work often deals with the lives of marginalized people. She is a professor of Playwriting at Columbia University. She was the first woman to have won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama twice; the first in 2009 for Ruined, and the second in 2017 for Sweat.

Reviews

[Marziye Foroughi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well, be careful what you wish for :)

[Elizabeth Day · Rating 2 out of 5]

The play had a SUPER interesting concept but I felt like it didn’t deliver. Nottage wrote a note at the beginning of the play about how the majority of women on death row were convicted of killing abusive husbands, but spontaneous combustion has yet to be deemed a criminal offense. I was immediately hooked upon reading that, and of course the symbolism of that is still there. However, it wasn’t played into as much as I wanted it to be. It also didn’t read as a comedy to me which is probably why I didn’t love it. Both of those things can surely be solved with direction.
(PG-13 rating)

[Jay · Rating 3 out of 5]

What a journey it was to read this one! At some point I thought I'm going to lose my mind because of the genre! I'm new when it comes to reading plays, so, that must be why! Here is what I wrote after reading it:

Is it supposed to be a comedy? Is it a tragedy? The genre has always been confusing to me. However, when it comes to a play or a drama, it becomes even worse. While reading this specific piece, I could not laugh, yet I could recognize some elements of a comedy. At some point, I was even thinking, “This must be a tragicomedy!”. Then I remembered how significant the audience can be in determining the genre.

While the most primary source for us— when identifying the genre of a play must be the text itself; the role of the audience, the class of the audience, their personal background, their cultural background, and even their experiences must not be overlooked. They, the audience, have their own expectations, experiences, and interpretive abilities. Therefore, their reactions, responses, and even their focus might be different. That’s why I decided to let it be whatever I’m comfortable with; which was tragedy.

Then I thought about a question a professor asked us. It was something like this, “Do you think a message is better conveyed, or leaves a better impression, if it’s given to us through tragedy or comedy?” This was a new thing to consider. I was thinking that even if the underlying message is deep and heartbreaking, maybe the intention of the writer was to use comedy as a tool to better convey their message. Maybe they thought it would be even more powerful, and the message will stick in one's mind for a longer time.

Now, putting the genre aside, the play itself was great. Some of the themes that I can refer to and have in mind are, domestic abuse, female friendship, patriarchy, and the failure of the justice system and law to protect women. Having companionship in a patriarchal society where you are being abused by men is really important, and the importance is bitterly conveyed in Trifles, a one-act by Susan Glaspell through the lack of it. In addition, another difference these two plays have lies in the women’s decisions on how to face the abuse. While Minnie chooses another way to put an end to her misery, which was unfortunate, Laureen decides to speak up. I believe that’s what the story wanted to tell, how your words can be powerful, and you need to speak up, and maybe that’ll end your misery.

If you are interested in the themes mentioned above, you’ll probably enjoy it. It won’t take you more than 5 minutes to finish it.


Rating 7/10

[CORSAK fan · Rating 5 out of 5]

A play about the long-term effects of domestic abuse / spousal abuse. Poof! delivers an interesting concept: a woman makes her husband go poof! He's dead, gone and she didn't know she had this capability. Somewhat like Katsa from Graceling. I wish this was a little longer, but it satisfied my play itch.

[Abigail]

almost unbelievable *wink wink*

[Michael Aragon · Rating 4 out of 5]

A brief character study of a survivor of domestic violence after she wishes her abuser turns into dust.

[Setare.afshoon · Rating 3 out of 5]

نمایشنامه ای فانتزی با اشاره به موضوعات زنان و خشونت خانگی

[Riley Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great concept!

[Sophia Forchetti · Rating 3 out of 5]

would love to see this scene performed in my scene study class

[Abby G · Rating 3 out of 5]

this was so funny i laughed out loud. i read it immediately after another play about a woman killing her husband and i had so much fun!

[Sandra Amaya Garcia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Breve pero impactante.
Poof! es una historia que combina el humor con una temática muy delicada. Lynn Nottage juega con el realismo mágico de una forma excepcional. Me gustó mucho cómo la autora utiliza el humor como herramienta para hacer la obra accesible sin perder la seriedad del mensaje. Las interacciones entre Loureen y Florence, llenas de sarcasmo y diálogos cómicos, aportan un respiro a una situación tensa, aunque el trasfondo sigue siendo doloroso.
Sin embargo, sentí que por ser una obra tan corta, algunos aspectos no se desarrollaron del todo. Aún así, Poof! transmite un mensaje poderoso: salir de una situación abusiva depende de encontrar la fuerza para dar el primer paso, aunque sea difícil.

[Azita Razaqpour · Rating 2 out of 5]

این نمایش نخستین‌بار در مهر و آبان 1379 در تئاتر چهارسو، و سپس در آذر و دی همان سال در فرهنگ‌سرای شفق اجرا شد: کارگردان: هوشنگ حسامی / طراح صحنه: سمیرا سینایی / موسیقی: سمیرا سینایی / نوازنده: حمید توسلی / دست‌یار کارگردان: نازنین جواهری / بازی‌گران
گلاب آدینه لورین Loureen
سیما تیرانداز فلورانس Florence
مسعود میرطاهری ساموئل
ISBN: 964-7204-14-0
This is a Persian Translation of POOF! by Lynn Nottage, from Plays for Actresses, Published by Vintage, 1997, pp. 521-534.
انتشارات تجربه (http://tajrobehbook.com/) تجربه‌های کوتاه - 77 / (نمایش‌نامه - آمریکا) / نام کتاب: پوف! / نویسنده: لین ناتیج / مترجم: هوشنگ حسامی / چاپ اول: 1380 / تیراژ: 3000 نسخه / لیتوگرافی: کیارنگ / چاپ و صحافی: اتاق چاپ
نشر تجربه (ناشران 80) تهران، کدپستی: 15858، خردمند شمالی، ساختمان 110، شماره‌ی 1، تلفن: 8829376/ فاکس: 8827270
نام نشانی تلفن: فروشگاه فلان تهران ، خیابان انقلاب ، 12 فروردین پلاک 30 66944468
تجربه‌های کوتاه (نمایش‌نامه، داستان) فرصت کوتاهی است برای زمانه و جامعه‌ئی که در آن کوتاه‌ترین فرصت‌ها و حوصله‌ها از آن مطالعه است. امیدواریم با انتشار هفته‌ثی یک دفتر از تجربه‌های کوتاه، نسل جوان ما، ضمن آشنایی با ادبیات نمایشی و داستانی ایران و جهان، انس بیش‌تری با کتاب و میل افزون‌تری به مطالعه پیدا کند.
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[Hosseinagha · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tajrobeh Publishing published translated version of Poof (tajrobehbook).
تاریخ امروز

[Alyse · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okay - not the greatest piece for two actresses

[Ren · Rating 3 out of 5]

Whoa... Spontaneous combustion as a symbol of liberty when a woman speaks her mind? Reminds me a lot of Trifles.

[J.N. Lewis · Rating 4 out of 5]

I absolutely cannot wait until I get to perform this, I love lynn nottage!!