Truman Capote Talk Show

From his unhappy childhood in the southern US to his drunken ramblings on talk shows, Capote is revealed as an artist aware of his weaknesses but unable to address them.

EVENT REVIEW BY GARETH K VILE.

PUBLISHED 13 OCTOBER 2006


Truman Capote played many roles: socialite who betrayed confidences, literary superstar, Andy Warhol's idol and then acolyte and, finally, tragic alcoholic. Bob Kingdom's monologue presents all these personae, portraying an author haunted by his own genius.

Kingdom captures Capote's high-pitched voice and camp manner, generating sympathy for a man whose acid wit and brittle self-assurance destroyed friendships and made his terrible decline inevitable. From his unhappy childhood in the southern US to his drunken ramblings on talk shows, Capote is revealed as an artist aware of his weaknesses but unable to address them. His successes - 'Breakfast at Tiffany's' and the novel 'In Cold Blood' - are overshadowed by Capote's personality and social life.


Kingdom keeps the audience delighted through bitchy witticisms, and captivated by the misery of Capote's later addictions. Capote's story is recast as a moral warning against excess and a celebration of his peerless way with words.