Cirrus@Austlit

'Among the players is the Prospero-like compere, endlessly scribbling and patiently shoring up the psyches of his troupe; Balt, who carries the luggage and the props, as well as a burden of silence and sadness; and Mrs. Barrington, a weeping, middle-aged soprano, whose voice is fading but who, in one magic moment, might again find the haunting truth of her young self. Ceaselessly devising pranks that threaten the success of the performance is the mischievous, swamp-dwelling rabbiter, whose obsession, a pale English girl with a saxophone, becomes a new Ariel. They each, whether show-man or rustic, have their own stories - of illusions fostered and shattered, desires met and denied - and their own particular revelation in the course of Meehan's eloquent and beautifully descriptive narrative. Yet as diverse as they may be, they are bound together this one evening by the transformative power of art.'--Book Jacket.