Shar Carson during a rehearsal for No Exit. Photo / Rob Edwards
Shar Carson during a rehearsal for No Exit. Photo / Rob Edwards
Think Shakespeare meets Jerry Springer - philosophy, ideology and comedic chaos come together in a darkly comedic production for the stage at The Globe Theatre in Palmerston North.
Jean-Paul Sartre’s French classic No Exit opens next week with a cast of four, Will Eddy, Shar Carson, Natasha Melbye and Zak Rodgers, all from FOPS Performing Arts.
After spending the first half of the year contributing to the success of other productions, they are looking forward to putting on their own offbeat show. Show director and producer Erin McLean said as a pioneer of the existentialist genre, Sartre uses the play to introduce to the world his own ideas and philosophies regarding life and death.
No Exit focuses on three petty, obnoxious, miserable, horrible people being locked in a room together. The play revolutionised the idea that hell may not be fire and brimstone, but rather a more personal, catered eternity, McLean said.
(From bottom): The cast for No Exit, which opens at the Globe Theatre next week: Will Eddy, Shar Carson, Natasha Melbye and Zak Rogers. Photo / Rob Edwards
Despite the work being thick with philosophy and deep ideas, McLean said she wanted to create a piece that is also universally enjoyable and brings some comedic levity.
The show is best suited for “those of us who enjoyed the world coming together to laugh at five billionaires meeting violent, horrific ends at the bottom of the ocean”, she said.
“We’re playing it like if it was Nietzsche, Shakespeare and a university philosophy lecturer meets The Jerry Springer [Show] or Dr. Phil show.”
“There’s obviously depth and big themes, but at its core we want people to just enjoy being allowed to laugh at these three awful people quite literally making each other’s lives hell - which, looking at the current national and global climate, might be needed right now.
“There’s slapstick, there’s fighting, there’s awkward sex, there’s lowbrow humour, all contrasted against a rich philosophical fable.”
The play is the source of the iconic philosophical quote “hell is other people” and introduced the world to the concept of “making someone’s life hell”.
In addition to bringing comedy and philosophy together, the production is also a showcase for queer representation in Palmerston North theatre. Its directed and produced by trans woman Erin McLean and features a lesbian as one of the central characters.
She said No Exit was one of the most prominent pieces of LGBTQIA+ theatre in France.
Erin McLean. Photo / Rob Edwards
For McLean, it was the first production she been involved with since “coming out” as a trans woman recently.
“It’s been good. The theatre community is welcoming, encouraging and supportive, so it’s been a rewarding process being able to create theatre for them again. It is a really accepting community,” she said.
“An important part of this production is the diversity of people it involves, with both the script itself and behind the scenes offering opportunities for all genders, ages and sexualities.”
