I'm not at a stage where I can understand even half of the meaning behind the madness in these plays. ( )

"The Bald Soprano" is pretty wonderful, but I truly hated "The Lesson." ( )

The title play is the best (and funniest) in this collection, which is remarkable since it was Ionesco's first. Theater of the Absurd is best in small doses, were it not for the length and scope, "The Chairs" would have been better. ( )

Absurdist theatre from one of the greatest masters. Ionesco treats us to the absurdity of human life with four plays that make almost no sense at all, and yet, at the same time, they do make sort of an absurd sense. The nonsensical use of words is reminiscent of Gertrude Stein; the use of strange characters in stranger situations of Samuel Beckett; the use of stark sets is worthy of the staunchest post-modernist, but the works are pure Ionesco, twisting as much absurdity as humanly possible into these four short plays. And in some cases, such as The Lesson, it is easy to believe he had a crystal ball, as some of the conversations were so eerily prescient; the attitude of the student toward mathematics and toward education in general is a picture-perfect portrayal of the millenial student. And I will read a long time before I find a line as sublime as "Philology leads to calamity". ( )

Absurd is not my style. I found this frustrating and irritating to read. If it wasn't an assignment, I wouldn't have gotten through ti. ( )