The three tall women are called A, B and C. A (Myra Carter) is a wealthy 92-year-old sputtering in and out of senility. B (Marian Seldes) is her patient secretary. C (Jordan Baker) is her bitchy young lawyer. At the close of Act I, A subsides into a coma with a stroke. In Act II the three women have become A at different points in her life: the lawyer is now A at 26, the secretary is A at 52, A is herself at 92, the senility replaced by a sharp mind and tongue. With masterly skill Albee has split the atom of identity into three personae who interact, evoking the life of a difficult woman with her wealthy, one-eyed, penguin-shaped husband. It’s also a deeply personal play, Albee’s final coming to terms with his adoptive mother, who had rejected her (then) bisexual son.
Belying his reputed misogyny, Albee has created a memorable trinity of women. AB three actresses have their black and blazing moments, but Albee has provided an astonishing role for an older woman, and Myra Carter’s wonderful performance is unforgettable. Insufferable but heartbreaking, evoking senility and sexuality, she transmutes our silly Golden Girl ideal into a passionate encounter with mortality.
