The Long Christmas Dinner by Thornton Wilder

Few playwrights engage with the concept of the passing of time better than Thornton Wilder. Published in 1931, The Long Christmas Dinner is a moving play about time’s transitory nature. The story spans ninety years and shows how generations of one family evolve while staying the same over decades of Christmas dinners. The short but powerful drama is less than 30 pages in written form and less than an hour when performed. Wilder seems to remind readers that though the days can seem dull, the cumulation of life’s mundane moments is sacred and should be savored.

The story begins in 1875 and ends in 1975. There is one continuous stream of conversation between members of the Bayard family around the dining room table of their Midwest home. Throughout the play, new babies and spouses arrive at the Christmas dinner from stage left while those who die leave on stage right. The first, Mother Bayard, speaks about crossing the Mississippi River on a newly made raft and the presence of Indians on the land where their new house sits. By 1975, her great-grandchildren discussed how the surrounding factories emit too much soot.

Bayard family members sometimes aren’t aware that they are repeating the language and stories of past generations. It is not that the dialogue is that interesting; it is not. There are comments about the wine, the turkey, or the ice outside. And yet, it is not any one Christmas dinner that offers insightful dialogue or observations, but the cumulation of Christmas dinners is unforgettable. Time keeps passing; young people are born and old people die. Wilder seems to be saying - whether or not you realize it - time is going by quicker than you know so appreciate your lives. Though seeing the play performed is preferred, The Long Christmas Dinner, in whatever form, crescendos to a finale of transcendence. 4.5/5