Overview
Synopsis
In Tennessee Williams’ Pulitzer Prize-winning Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, the dysfunctional but wealthy Pollitt family gathers to celebrate aging patriarch Big Daddy’s birthday. But there is more to this gathering than a family reunion-- Big Daddy is dying of cancer, and he hasn’t decided which of his sons will inherit the estate. His options include favorite son Brick, who drinks himself into oblivion in order to bear the oppressive expectations of his determined wife, Maggie, or his less-favored son Gooper, his fertile wife Mae, and their five “no-neck monster” children. While sensuous Maggie “the cat” tries to work her wiles to secure a future for them, Brick spirals deeper into despair, crippled by both physical pain and emotional loss. Lurking under every practiced interaction between the Pollitts is an ulterior motive, under every smile, a challenge, and under every statement, the specter of mendacity. For the Pollitts, the truth is as hazy as the late summer sun in Mississippi, and sometimes the only way to find it is to journey through the lies.
Show Information
Context
In the 1950s, reeling from the traumas of World War II, Americans turned their energies to building safer, more wholesome lives at home. Encouraged by the birth of modern suburbia, the return to traditional job roles, and the rise of television (and role models like Leave it to Beaver’s perfect housewife, June Cleaver), they focused anew on the importance of nuclear family life. In 1955, Southern playwright Tennessee Williams (already a Pulitzer Prize-winner for his 1948 play, _A Streetcar
to read the context for Cat on a Hot Tin Roof and to unlock other amazing theatre resources!Plot
Act One
In the sweeping mansion on Big Daddy Pollitt’s Mississippi cotton plantation, Maggie, the beautiful, sensuous wife of favorite son Brick Pollitt, is dressing at her mirror while Brick, who has been injured and uses a crutch, gets out of the shower. She is irritable, exhausted by the antics of her many nieces and nephews. She terms the children of Brick’s brother, Gooper, “no-neck monsters.” Maggie tells Brick that the performative skits Gooper and his wife, Mae, have been staging
to read the plot for Cat on a Hot Tin Roof and to unlock other amazing theatre resources!Characters
Showing 8 of 10 characters
Character Portrayals
See StageAgent members who have performed roles in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof.
Showing 8 of 11 portrayals
Want to be featured on this page? Update your credits.
Monologues
Scenes
Key Terms
An act is a major division of a play, opera, or musical, typically separated by an intermission or pause. Each act often advances the story with its own rising action, climax, and resolution. Classical plays had five acts, while modern works more often use one, two, or three.
A theme in theatre representing hope, success, and its disillusionment, particularly in realist and symbolist plays.
A recurring character type or symbol representing universal patterns in storytelling, often used in classical and contemporary theatre.
Describes cultural norms favoring heterosexual relationships, often critiqued in modern and queer theatre.
A powerful female figure who leads a family or social group, often featured in dramatic works as a symbol of strength, tradition, or authority. Matriarchs play pivotal roles in both classical and contemporary theatre as central moral or emotional anchors.
Hatred or prejudice against women, a theme often critiqued in feminist and realist plays to explore gender roles and oppression.
A family unit of parents and children that often forms the societal backdrop for dramatic conflict and generational themes.
The male head of a family or group, often dramatized in theatre to explore power, legacy, and traditional authority.
A subdivision of a play or opera defined by continuous action in one setting. Scenes help organize dramatic structure and transitions, often marked by changes in characters or locations.
Videos
Quizzes
Guide Written By:
