The Bridges of Madison County

Background

Without expecting to, Robert James Waller conceived of The Bridges of Madison County in the early 1990s. On leave from his teaching job at the University of Northern Iowa, Waller was photographing the Mississippi River with a friend when he decided to photograph the covered bridges of Madison County, Iowa. This event, alongside a song Waller wrote years earlier about "the dreams of a woman named Francesca", gave him the idea for the novel, After he had written The Bridges of Madison County, Waller came to believe that he had based the character of Francesca Johnson on his wife, Georgia, whom Francesca physically resembles.

Analysis

According to Marc Eliot, Waller's novel is a modernization of the Noël Coward play Still Life (1934), which was adapted into David Lean's film Brief Encounter (1945). Still Life is about "the desperation, guilt, and temptations of two married people who meet, fall in love, commit adultery, and then separate forever". In The New York Times, Brigitte Weeks said that The Bridges of Madison County had appealed to "middle-aged, world-weary people" in a manner similar to the writings of James A. Michener, though it features more sexuality than Michener's books. The Bridges of Madison County received multiple comparisons to Erich Segal's Love Story (1970) for its plot and prose. The New York Times Magazine found the novel's prose comparable to that of Jonathan Livingston Seagull (1970) by Richard Bach. The Independent Nicolette Jones found the novel reminiscent of the books published by Mills & Boon, while Owen Gleiberman found it more similar to an anecdote than to a regular narrative.

Reception

Orlando Sentinel L.S. Klepp of Entertainment Weekly called The Bridges of Madison County "a short, poignant story, moving precisely because it has the ragged edges of reality". Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times praised the novel's "compelling" story for "elevating to a spiritual level the common fantasy, in which a virile stranger materializes in the kitchen of a quiet housewife and takes her into his arms." The book debuted on the New York Times bestseller list in August 1992 and slowly climbed to number 1, and remained on the list for over three years (164 consecutive weeks), through October 8, 1995.

Film adaptation

The Bridges of Madison County was made into a 1995 film of the same name, adapted by Richard LaGravenese and directed by Clint Eastwood. It stars Eastwood and Meryl Streep.

Musical adaptation

Main article: The Bridges of Madison County (musical)

The Bridges of Madison County was adapted into a Tony Award-winning musical with music and lyrics by Jason Robert Brown and the book by Marsha Norman, premiering at the 2013 Williamstown Theatre Festival. Directed by Bartlett Sher, the cast featured Elena Shaddow as Francesca and Steven Pasquale. The musical began previews on Broadway at the Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre on January 17, 2014 and officially opened on February 20, 2014 with Kelli O'Hara as Francesca and Steven Pasquale as Robert Kincaid. Directed by Bartlett Sher, the sets are by Michael Yeargan, costumes by Catherine Zuber, and lighting by Donald Holder. Hunter Foster played the role of Bud Johnson, the husband of Francesca. It closed in May of the same year after 100 performances.

Theatre

In 2018, the Argentine theatrical director Luis "Indio" Romero directed actors Facundo Arana and Araceli González in a Spanish version of the work.

References

Bibliography

References

1. Gleiberman, Owen. (June 9, 1995). "The Bridges of Madison County".
2. (10 March 2017). "'Bridges of Madison County' author Waller dies at age 77". Reuters.
3. Grimes, William. (March 10, 2017). "Robert James Waller, Author of 'The Bridges of Madison County,' Dies at 77". [[The New York Times]].
4. Levine, Daniel S.. (March 10, 2017). "Robert James Waller Dead: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know".
5. Travers, Peter. (June 2, 1995). "The Bridges of Madison County".
6. Jones, Nicolette. (October 10, 1993). "BOOK REVIEW / Cowbore of yesteryear: 'The Bridges of Madison County' - Robert James Waller: Mandarin, 3.99 pounds". [[The Independent]].
7. Klepp, L.S. [https://web.archive.org/web/20070429052655/http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,310787,00.html "BOOK REVIEW: The Bridges of Madison County"] June 12, 1992.
8. Ebert, Roger. (June 2, 1995). "The Bridges of Madison County". [[Chicago Sun-Times]].
9. Lyall, Sarah (28 July 1993). [https://www.nytimes.com/1993/07/28/books/book-notes-704993.html?pagewanted=all "Book Notes: A Big Year for 'Bridges'"], ''[[The New York Times]]''
10. (8 October 1995). [http://www.hawes.com/1995/1995-10-08.pdf "Best Seller List"], ''[[The New York Times]]''
11. [http://bridgesofmadisoncountymusical.com/ Official site] bridgesofmadisoncountymusical
12. Staff. [http://www.playbill.com/news/article/192094-Just-the-Winners-Please-Who-Won-the-68th-Annual-Tony-Awards "Just the Winners, Please: Who Won the 68th Annual Tony Awards"] {{Webarchive. link. (2014-06-09 playbill.com, June 8, 2014)
13. (2014-02-18). "The Tony Award Nominees - Shows - TonyAwards.com - The American Theatre Wing's Tony Awards® - Official Website by IBM". TonyAwards.com.
14. Hetrick, Adam. [http://www.playbill.com/news/article/180673-The-Bridges-of-Madison-County-Starring-Steven-Pasquale-and-Elena-Shaddow-Premieres-at-Williamstown " 'The Bridges of Madison County', Starring Steven Pasquale and Elena Shaddow, Premieres at Williamstown"] {{Webarchive. link. (2013-08-03 playbill.com, August 1, 2013)
15. Hetrick, Adam. [http://www.playbill.com/news/article/186567-The-Bridges-of-Madison-County-Starring-Kelli-OHara-and-Steven-Pasquale-Arrives-on-Broadway-Jan-17 " 'The Bridges of Madison County', Starring Kelli O'Hara and Steven Pasquale, Arrives on Broadway Jan. 17"] {{Webarchive. link. (2014-02-01 playbill.com, January 17, 2014)
16. link. (2013-12-02 playbill.com, November 26, 2013)
17. link. (2014-03-21 playbill.com, February 21, 2014)
18. Hetrick, Adam. [http://www.playbill.com/news/article/185074-Hunter-Foster-Completes-Love-Triangle-of-Broadway-Musical-The-Bridges-of-Madison-County "Hunter Foster Completes Love Triangle of Broadway Musical The Bridges of Madison County'"] {{Webarchive. link. (2013-12-06 playbill.com, December 3, 2013)
19. "The Bridges of Madison County". Internet Broadway Database.
20. "Los puentes de Madison". Alternativa Teatral.