As Is
As Is portrays the effect that AIDS, a relatively new epidemic in the 1980s, has on a group of friends living in New York City. It was one of the early plays, and subsequent TV movies, depicting how the epidemic was affecting gay Americans. As Is opened shortly before Larry Kramer's play The Normal Heart. This play depicts a gay couple, Saul and Richard, who open the play, and their separation. Rich's firm decision to separate is reversed when he returns to Saul after contracting AIDS from his new lover. Seeking emotional support, Rich shows how people with AIDS were treated by the American family, doctors, and friends. Their impersonal and detached attitudes lead Rich to recognize the importance of the partner for the person with AIDS. The play begins, and ends, with a monologue by a middle-aged, female hospice worker, describing her new patient, Richard. In the second scene, Saul, one of the two main characters, states that he is Jewish while arguing about possessions with Richard, who makes an antisemitic remark and reveals he has AIDS during their ongoing breakup.