Why Paula Vogel Thinks One Scene in ‘How I Learned to Drive’ Makes No Sense, and How David Morse Solved It
variety.comGordon Cox Theater EditorPlaywright Paula Vogel won a Pulitzer Prize for her 25-year-old play “How I Learned to Drive,” which has been seen in productions around the world and is now on Broadway in a staging nominated for three Tony Awards.
But there’s still one part of the play that remains a mystery even to her.Listen to this week’s “Stagecraft” podcast below:“It makes no sense in the structure of the play,” Vogel said on “Stagecraft,” Variety’s theater podcast, on which she appeared alongside the production’s Tony-nominated star David Morse. “It’s a complete interruption of the narrative.”She was describing a scene in which Uncle Peck, the character played by Morse, takes young Cousin Bobby fishing.
The delicately acted moment resonates with discomfiting echoes of the play’s main storyline, which follows the sexual relationship between Peck and his much younger niece Li’l Bit (played by Mary-Louise Parker).
But as Vogel admits, in a play that is told almost entirely from Li’l Bit’s perspective, this one sequence, in which Li’l Bit plays no part, isn’t a logical fit.
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