Getting Out

Getting Out (1978), a play by Marsha Norman. [Marymount Manhattan Theatre, 22 perf.] When Arlene Holsclaw (Susan Kingsley) is released from prison, she is determined to lead a decent life but remains haunted by her younger, more vicious self, Arlie (Pamela Reed). Settling into the dingy room that she expects to call home, Arlene is visited by her mother (Madeleine Thornton‐Sherwood), who dredges up old memories; by Carl (Leo Burmester), a pimp who was her lover and who would have her return to prostitution; and by Bennie (Barry Corbin), her former jailer, who tries to seduce her. With the help of an understanding neighbor, Ruby (Joan Pape), she begins to realize that she can handle herself properly and even live with the vestiges of Arlie that still cry within her. A sordid, foul‐mouthed, yet compassionate and moving play, the work was first mounted in 1977 by the Actors Theater of Louisville and later won the American Theatre Critics Association award as the season's outstanding play. After its original New York engagement by the Phoenix Theatre, it reopened at the Theatre de Lys and ran for an additional 237 performances.