ABSTRACT
August Strindberg's The Dance of Death is a two-part play that works like a tragicomedy. It shifts abruptly from mood to mood and the actor must be prepared to go in whatever direction the author chooses. A character taunts when ones expect them to comfort. Strindberg conceived the play as a claustrophobic battleground in which his celebrated war between the sexes could be played out in splendid isolation. In part two of the drama a young couple is introduced to serve as an antidote to the hostile relationship between Edgar and Alice. Alice's speech is full of quirks and rapid shifts. She is both provoking and ministering simultaneously, both motherly and seductive. She promises and denies. She seems to be trying to make Allan feel worse, rather than better. Remember that she is talking about her own daughter, which makes some of the things she says sound hostile.
