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Swimming to Cambodia Review
Swimming to Cambodia is fundamentally an autobiographical monologue, and one only peripherally connected to the (excellent) film that inspired it, The Killing Fields. Those unfamiliar with Spalding Gray’s works may be perplexed to read his self-centered, occasionally manic or depressive, and deeply personal ramblings. This book is, in a way, misleading; even more so than Shakespeare’s plays, Gray’s monologues are meant to be watched, not read. It’s difficult to imagine his drawling New England accent, the ironic and self-deprecating humor, and the incredible honesty with which Gray would sit at a table with a glass of water and share, fundamentally, himself.
Swimming to Cambodia is not the first of what became his signature internal dialogs, but as it is the earliest work available on film, it’s a good place to start. Those who may recognize him from his work in small film roles (Beaches, King of the Hill), or theater (including a much-loved role as the Stage Manager in Our Town) may be surprised to learn of his collection of solo stage work. Some are available only as a manuscript (Sex & Death to the Age 14), others as a sound recording (Slippery Slope), and three have been filmed (Monster in a Box, Gray’s Anatomy), including this piece. Gray’s work should be explored as a whole; the narrative of his life informed and expanded on continuing themes of anxiety, his mother’s battle with mental illness and early-middle-aged suicide, his relationships with women, his eventual fatherhood. His final, unfinished monologue, is accompanied by the epitaphs of those who knew and loved him, and who were saddened by but understood his final succumbing to depression in 2004. Start at the beginning, and get as close to the live versions of his works as you can.
If you’re looking for insight into the political history of Cambodia, or deeper meaning in the Oscar-winning film based on a true story about the friendship between an American journalist and his Cambodian counterpart, you’ve come to the wrong place. Gray does address topics like the sex trade in Cambodia (often graphically), and his experience filming The Killing Fields in Thailand, but he weaves these in with his thoughts on his adopted home town, New York, or a train ride from Philly to Chicago. But if you’re interested in the opportunity for an honest (and often humorous) glimpse into the mind of a brilliant, insightful, and emotionally complicated performer, this is the beginning. Spalding Gray blurred the lines between life and performance, and so I urge you to experience his work as a living process, the way he shared it.
Swimming to Cambodia Overview
“It took courage to do what Spalding did—courage to make theatre so naked and unadorned, to expose himself in this way and fight the demons in public. In doing so, he entered our hearts—my heart—because he made his struggle my struggle. His life became my life.”—Eric Bogosian
“Virtuosic. A master writer, reporter, comic and playwright. Spalding Gray is a sit-down monologist with the soul of a stand-up comedian. A contemporary Gulliver, he travels the globe in search of experience and finds the ridiculous.”—The New York Times
In 2004, we mourned the loss of one of America’s true theatrical innovators. Spalding Gray took his own life by jumping from the Staten Island ferry into the waters of New York Harbor, finally succumbing to the impossible notion that he could in fact swim to Cambodia. At a memorial gathering for family, friends and fans at Lincoln Center in New York, his widow expressed the need to honor Gray’s legacy as an artist and writer for his children, as well as for future generations of fans and readers. Originally published in 1985, Swimming to Cambodia is reissued here 20 years later in a new edition as a tribute to Gray’s singular artistry.
Writer, actor and performer, Spalding Gray is the author of Sex and Death to the Age 14; Monster in a Box; It’s a Slippery Slope; Gray’s Anatomy and Morning, Noon and Night, among other works. His appearance in The Killing Fields was the inspiration for his Swimming to Cambodia, which was also filmed by Jonathan Demme.
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Patomphong Suwanpruk