On Demand
Selected Shorts
Sunday, August 03, 2008
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The Mount (ann-dabney/flickr)Debts paid, and memories honored
"…Why my husband wants him about--" poor Mrs. Lanfear, the kindest of women, privately lamented to her friends; for Dredge, at that time--they kept him all summer at the bungalow--had one of the most encumbering personalities you can imagine. He was as inexpressive as he is to-day, and yet oddly obtrusive: one of those uncomfortable presences whose silence is an interruption.
Two tales of loyalty and bewilderment, from an American master and a contemporary storyteller.
--Edith Wharton, “The Debt”
Both stories on this week’s program were part of SELECTED SHORTS’ growing touring program. Edith Wharton’s classic tale of character, loyalty, and cutting edge science (the work is almost a Darwinian roman a clef), “The Debt,” was read at her own home, The Mount, in the Berkshire Hills. The reader was SHORTS regular James Naughton, a Tony Award-winner for his roles in "Chicago," and "City of Angels," among many other theatre credits. And Maile Meloy’s poignant “Acqua Boulevard” was read in her own former high school in Helena, Montana, by host Isaiah Sheffer. Meloy is the author of the story collection "Half in Love" and the novels "Liars and Saints" and "A Family Daughter." Her stories have appeared in The New Yorker, Ploughshares, and The Paris Review, and have been awarded the Aga Khan Prize for Fiction and the PEN/Malamud Award among other distinctions.
“The Debt,” by Edith Wharton, read by James Naughton
“Acqua Boulevard,” by Maile Meloy, read by Isaiah Sheffer For additional works featured on SELECTED SHORTS, please visit Symphony Space
“Acqua Boulevard,” by Maile Meloy, read by Isaiah Sheffer For additional works featured on SELECTED SHORTS, please visit Symphony Space
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