Rabbit Hole Book

When I was first thinking of "Rabbit Hole"'s title, I felt that it wasn't really appropriate. But then I realized that when I was thinking about the phrase "down the rabbit hole", I was thinking of some fantastic adventure like one that would be experienced in "Alice In Wonderland". When I thought about it more, I realized that David Lindsay-Abaire's play was probably even more deserving of the phrase than the adventures experienced by Alice. For starters, the rabbit hole in this play is sudden and shocking, as a rabbit hole should be (I should know because I've tripped in one before). In this case, the tragedy experienced by the Corbett family comes without warning and, much like that other famous rabbit hole, completely twists their logic inside out. The impact of the tragedy is made just as surprising for the audience as it is for the characters, as they are only given a slight warning before they find themselves steeped within the family's tragedy.

What makes this rabbit hole different from others is the effect it has on the characters of this play. Unlike Alice, the place where this rabbit hole leads the family is not the one these characters can wake up from. Even if the characters did have the option to wake up and forget the events that so changed their lives, they would not wish to. And indeed, the option to forget or cling to the tragedy is an important piece of this play, as the characters struggle to think of what they should keep and what they must let go. But in the end, what this play really shows is a family that must struggle to not necessarily overcome their differences, but rather try to ignore them for a moment so they can lift themselves out of the rabbit hole they fell into and move on. But unlike most simple encounters with rabbit holes, this family will never be able to fully heal from what they lost, and it is Lindsay-Abaire's ability to show this that really causes this play to shine.