THE ANGER IN ERNEST AND ERNESTINE Robert Morgan, Martha Ross and Leah Cherniak Toronto, Playwrights Canada Press, 1990. 72pp, paper, $9.95 ISBN 0-88754-492-4. CIP Grade 10 and up/Ages 15 and up Reviewed by Alan Thomas. Volume 18 Number 6 1990 November This play about living together comes from a small theatre group named Theatre Columbus, which explains itself in an introductory note as improvisational and performance oriented. The incidental use of pop-rock music, designated as "urban rhythms" (and one Springsteen number) and dialogue that does not flinch at repeti­tions of "fuck" indicates post-sixties youth culture as the basis for the play's tone and manner. The authors also claim that the clown tradition guides their style in performance. In its ideas the play is quite evidently aimed at youth and its anxieties. The subject is the anger contained, though usually hidden, in individuals involved in 'long-term relationships." Sketched out in brief scenes, the story tells of the trials of a young couple living in a basement apartment. Need for tolerance and understanding between individuals, even those in love, is the moral implied. The play ends with an ambiguous scene in which the protagonists dance with guns in hand which are "alternately dangerous and harmless." This metaphoric polarization of feelings, alarmingly crude as it is, drives home the message. The play's mixture of broad humour, sentiment and morality makes it a palatable dish for high school students. Theatre Columbus' production won it a Dora in 1988. Alan Thomas, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ont.