Proof, by David Auburn

Proof covers all the big themes: death, depression, the relationship of intellect to madness, professional success and personal failure, seduction and deduction, memories of the past and dreams of the future, and does it in a scathingly witty and highly pleasurable evening on a back porch. It is the story of Catherine, whose genius father has just died, and Hal, the former student who wants to use her to get to her father’s unpublished material. Throw in a visiting sister, who wants to put Catherine in an institution, and flashback appearances of Daddy deadest and you have a much more enjoyable and insightful treatment of the relationship of intelligence and insanity than A Beautiful Mind. Higher mathematics is the hinge on which all this pivots, but if you passed ninth grade algebra, none of it will be over your head. This is the national touring version of the production that swept the Tony Awards last year, and won the Pulitzer for Drama for David Auburn. Unfortunately, you won’t see Mary-Louise Parker as Catherine, as we did on Broadway, but you can watch her on West Wing and imagine.


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