Imagine your dreams coming true. Imagine that what you thought was a dream was true. Life could get very confusing - and that is what happens to the characters of Man and Woman in Christopher Durang's Laughing Wild. Or does it?
The themes of the frustration and rage caused by living in a frenetic urban environment and the need to look for a meaning in life are universal, and are explored by the two protagonists, each seeking a way to deal with these issues. And each of them has a host of other issues that challenge them - how to attempt to be more positive, while battling with deep negativity; the search for one other person that will understand the needs buried deep inside, the search for equilibrium in all things.
The lives of the Man and the Woman become inextricably entwined through one single incident; from then on, although they never meet again, they become part of each other's dreams, as they attempt to find the meaning of life as seen through the eyes of Durang. As the play progresses, we acknowledge that much of what is being said is true of each and every one of us, in some part.
So, we share the evening with these two dreamers and through the quality of the writing, we come to understand that we share even more with them than we thought. Laughing Wild... amid severest woe. This play contains sensitive material of a religious nature that may offend, and is certified 18.
According to director Polly March, the plot is either very simple or very, very complicated. "The simple version is that a man and a woman meet once - and only once - in the tinned fish aisle of the supermarket. And then they dream of each other in various contexts. That's it. Or... the more interesting version - a woman, emotionally very disturbed and who has been institutionalised, attacks a man standing in front of her in the supermarket because he does not seem to sense her need to get past him to reach the tinned tuna.
"A man who is attempting to have a positive attitude to his life (in spite of the fact he is by nature deeply negative) finds himself attacked by an apparently mad woman. This, of course, bears out his theory that life is basically unfair and unreasonable. We have two monologues and a shared third scene, during which we find that in spite of that one and only meeting, they are now inextricably enmeshed in each other's dreams, as they attempt to seek peace and balance for themselves," Ms March explains.
Although written in the late 1980s, Christopher Durang's writing stands the test of time. He is a gifted satirist, with a pen dipped in acid. He has tackled big themes in this play: he has issues with attitudes to Aids, homosexuality and the Church (he was brought up a Roman Catholic). Ms March hopes that, although the material is highly sensitive, local audiences will react positively to it.
"When a piece of work is truthful, such as this play is, and deals with universal themes, as this play does, then it speaks to each of us about our own situation. And any piece of theatre should move one on a step - a new insight, a new thought, a new way of looking at an old problem, maybe. If it does, then it will have served its purpose. And as an audience, we should look for those opportunities that will move us, change us, entertain us. Laughing Wild does all of those things," she says.
Those of you who have followed Alan Montanaro's career as a comedian may be in for a bit of a surprise. In Laughing Wild we get to see a surprisingly darker shade to his comic talents.
"I've never played a character like this before, or maybe I've been playing him all my life. Here we have an individual who attends personality workshops to overcome his insecurities while perpetually in search of his reason for being. The way the characters are written means we are consistently discovering new layers to the character. The learning curve for me as an actor is steep. Characters, moves and moods are discussed at length before actually attempting to work the rehearsal. The fact that I am working with two professional people like Polly and Denise is also extremely exciting; and, at times, daunting," he smiles.
Denise Mulholland will be a familiar name to many singing and drama students. This will be her acting debut here in Malta and the play provides a canvas for her huge performing range. And she gets to sing a bit, too...
"The character of Woman is a very difficult one. This is a woman who has been mentally ill most of her life and has been in and out of various institutions, yet she speaks an inordinate amount of sense and truth. Most of us edit what we say - we have a 'gauge' which regulates our responses, but very often we can be less than honest. This character has no gauge - she is painfully, brutally honest and although she is shocking at times, there is a sense of liberation and freedom in her responses. The main challenge in playing a character that is mentally ill, is in making her 'sane'."
"Laughing Wild is a brilliantly written play. It is thought-provoking, challenging and moving. Despite the subject matter, there are moments of laughter perhaps caused by our unease at the situation. Like all good theatre though, the play continues to resonate in the mind long after it is over," she says.
• Laughing Wild is being presented by the MADC at St James Cavalier on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, on January 26 and 27 and on February 1, 2 and 3. Tickets may be obtained from the booking office by phone on 2122 3200 or by e-mail: boxoffice@sjcav.org. More information can be found online at www.sjcav.org and www.madc.biz.
The themes of the frustration and rage caused by living in a frenetic urban environment and the need to look for a meaning in life are universal, and are explored by the two protagonists, each seeking a way to deal with these issues. And each of them has a host of other issues that challenge them - how to attempt to be more positive, while battling with deep negativity; the search for one other person that will understand the needs buried deep inside, the search for equilibrium in all things.
The lives of the Man and the Woman become inextricably entwined through one single incident; from then on, although they never meet again, they become part of each other's dreams, as they attempt to find the meaning of life as seen through the eyes of Durang. As the play progresses, we acknowledge that much of what is being said is true of each and every one of us, in some part.
So, we share the evening with these two dreamers and through the quality of the writing, we come to understand that we share even more with them than we thought. Laughing Wild... amid severest woe. This play contains sensitive material of a religious nature that may offend, and is certified 18.
According to director Polly March, the plot is either very simple or very, very complicated. "The simple version is that a man and a woman meet once - and only once - in the tinned fish aisle of the supermarket. And then they dream of each other in various contexts. That's it. Or... the more interesting version - a woman, emotionally very disturbed and who has been institutionalised, attacks a man standing in front of her in the supermarket because he does not seem to sense her need to get past him to reach the tinned tuna.
"A man who is attempting to have a positive attitude to his life (in spite of the fact he is by nature deeply negative) finds himself attacked by an apparently mad woman. This, of course, bears out his theory that life is basically unfair and unreasonable. We have two monologues and a shared third scene, during which we find that in spite of that one and only meeting, they are now inextricably enmeshed in each other's dreams, as they attempt to seek peace and balance for themselves," Ms March explains.
Although written in the late 1980s, Christopher Durang's writing stands the test of time. He is a gifted satirist, with a pen dipped in acid. He has tackled big themes in this play: he has issues with attitudes to Aids, homosexuality and the Church (he was brought up a Roman Catholic). Ms March hopes that, although the material is highly sensitive, local audiences will react positively to it.
"When a piece of work is truthful, such as this play is, and deals with universal themes, as this play does, then it speaks to each of us about our own situation. And any piece of theatre should move one on a step - a new insight, a new thought, a new way of looking at an old problem, maybe. If it does, then it will have served its purpose. And as an audience, we should look for those opportunities that will move us, change us, entertain us. Laughing Wild does all of those things," she says.
Those of you who have followed Alan Montanaro's career as a comedian may be in for a bit of a surprise. In Laughing Wild we get to see a surprisingly darker shade to his comic talents.
"I've never played a character like this before, or maybe I've been playing him all my life. Here we have an individual who attends personality workshops to overcome his insecurities while perpetually in search of his reason for being. The way the characters are written means we are consistently discovering new layers to the character. The learning curve for me as an actor is steep. Characters, moves and moods are discussed at length before actually attempting to work the rehearsal. The fact that I am working with two professional people like Polly and Denise is also extremely exciting; and, at times, daunting," he smiles.
Denise Mulholland will be a familiar name to many singing and drama students. This will be her acting debut here in Malta and the play provides a canvas for her huge performing range. And she gets to sing a bit, too...
"The character of Woman is a very difficult one. This is a woman who has been mentally ill most of her life and has been in and out of various institutions, yet she speaks an inordinate amount of sense and truth. Most of us edit what we say - we have a 'gauge' which regulates our responses, but very often we can be less than honest. This character has no gauge - she is painfully, brutally honest and although she is shocking at times, there is a sense of liberation and freedom in her responses. The main challenge in playing a character that is mentally ill, is in making her 'sane'."
"Laughing Wild is a brilliantly written play. It is thought-provoking, challenging and moving. Despite the subject matter, there are moments of laughter perhaps caused by our unease at the situation. Like all good theatre though, the play continues to resonate in the mind long after it is over," she says.
• Laughing Wild is being presented by the MADC at St James Cavalier on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, on January 26 and 27 and on February 1, 2 and 3. Tickets may be obtained from the booking office by phone on 2122 3200 or by e-mail: boxoffice@sjcav.org. More information can be found online at www.sjcav.org and www.madc.biz.