About the Play:

The Sign in Sidney Brustein's Window has long been a favourite of acting teachers for Female Monologues and and Female/Male Scenes.

The Sign in Sidney Brustein's Window is a full-length dramatic comedy by Lorraine Hansberry. This sprawling and complex masterpiece tells the story of Sidney and Iris Brustein, a young couple in New York City's West Village whose troubled marriage becomes even more challenging as they clash over personal politics and ideals. Is it possible to keep one's idealism while faced with life's never ending compromises and disappointments?

The Sign in Sidney Brustein's Window is set against the shenanigans of a stormy political campaign in 1960s Greenwich Village, and the work eerily reflects today's political climate, holding up a mirror to the injustice and corruption of the contemporary world. This is the probing, hilarious and provocative story of Sidney Brustein, a newspaper publisher and political activist, his wife Iris, an aspiring actress, and their colourful circle of friends and relations during a time of rapid change. As Sidney gets increasingly swept up in the radical issues of the day, however, he ignores the equally dangerous tension mounting between himself and his wife Iris, the one person he holds most dear. The heartfelt final work from A Raisin in the Sun playwright Lorraine Hansberry follows its characters in their unorthodox quests for meaningful lives in an age of corruption, alienation and cynicism. With compassion, humour and poignancy, the author examines questions concerning the fragility of love, morality and ethics, interracial relationships, drugs, rebellion, conformity and especially withdrawal from our commitment to the world.

The Sign in Sidney Brustein's Window premiered in 1964 at Henry Miller's Theatre (now the Longacre Theatre) and ran for over 100 performances on Broadway. The play has become a favourite scene study vehicle in acting classes and workshops and is regularly performed in regional, college, and community theatre productions..

Cast: 3 female, 5 male

What people say:

"Magnificent Sign in Sidney Brustein's Window is a rediscovered classic ... an extraordinary play, a drama so infused with emotional intelligence, linguistic treasures and the human conditions of dread and longing that it keeps you bolt-upright in your seat ... a masterpiece lost in plain sight." — Chicago Tribune

"Rich, warm, funny, vital and varied.... Beautifully written." — Los Angeles Times

"Shines with humor, trembles with feeling and summons up a vision of wisdom and integrity." — New York Times

About the Playwright:

Lorraine Hansberry (1930-1965) was an African-American playwright and author of political speeches, letters, and essays. She also worked at the Pan-Africanist newspaper Freedom. Her best known work, A Raisin in the Sun, was the first play by an African-American woman produced on Broadway.