The Way We Get By
by Neil Labute

Name: The Way We Get By
Brand: Neil Labute
SKU: 9780822233992
Rating: 3.4 (94 reviews)

The Way We Get By Book Cover — The Way We Get By Cover

Highlights

Small Cast

Female

Male

Unit Set/Multiple SettingsAmerican Comedy

What readers are saying

Readers have mixed feelings about the play, noting its engaging dialogue and character exploration typical of Neil LaBute, but some are disappointed with the predictable and tidy ending. While many appreciate the exploration of vulnerability and intimacy, a few critics feel that the play lacks innovation, resembling previous works too closely. Overall, it seems to divide audiences between those who enjoy LaBute's signature style and those who desire more originality.

Engaging character explorationWitty and sharp dialogueThemes of love and intimacyPredictable and tidy endingFeels too similar to previous works

Synopsis

Meet Beth and Doug, two people who have no problems getting dates with their partners of choice.

After a drunken party and a hot night, they wake up to a blurry morning where the rules of attraction, sex, and society are waiting for them before their first cup of coffee.

It’s very awkward—and it also leads the pair to ponder how much they really know about each other, and how much they really care about what other people think.

THE WAY WE GET BY is a play about love and lust and the whole damn thing.

Press Reviews

"[LaBute] has done something unique to his brand of well-established playwriting genre; that is of the darkly cynical variety. THE WAY WE GET BY is a good play with an important conundrum (which I won’t ruin for you), with a positive and hopeful ending, (that much I will ruin for you). It actually feels good in our ever wary world to see that problems, no matter how challenging, can be worked out and realized without the usual, ‘Maybe I should have slit my wrists long ago,’ attitudes of characters with complex lives. After all, everything is complex these days.” —Huffington Post. “…sexy…[LaBute] relishes the art of thwarting expectations.” —The New York Times. “One-night stands often produce repercussions, but few are as emotionally fraught as the one depicted in Neil LaBute’s [THE WAY WE GET BY]…the playwright’s gift for amusing banter is very much on display.” —The Hollywood Reporter. “[LaBute’s] sometimes brutal wit has long been accompanied by an equally fierce moral curiosity"
— USA Today