 THE QUESTORS ARCHIVE |
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THE QUESTORS THEATRE
12 Mattock Lane,Ealing, London W5 5BQ Tel: 020 8567 0011 |
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| The play is constructed over nine scenes (‘conversations’) which take place in the moments and hours after the burial of widower and father of three grown-up children, Simon Weinberg. The three children (Alex, Nathan and Edith) gather for the funeral, which takes place on the family estate, along with their uncle Pierre and his new wife Julienne. A day that might well have passed off without incident becomes fraught with tension when Alex's ex-girlfriend Elisa turns up in their midst. When I first read the play I wasn't particularly won over by it but I was intrigued enough by the writing to want to read it again. As the title suggests, for the most part the script is very conversational — almost to the point of being mundane. However, on reading it a second and third time it became apparent that, rather like Pinter, the strength of this play is not in what is said but what is left unsaid. It was at this point that I began to understand the power of the piece as a deeply moving exploration of the relationships between members of a family at a moment in time when they are forced to reflect on their respective lives, loves and losses. The play is set in France and has been described by one journalist as “exquisitely Gallic”. Christopher Hampton's translation preserves the essence of Frenchness that characterizes Reza's writing but, since we are performing it in English, I have decided against imposing French accents on the actors (or the audience!). Yasmina Reza (b. 1959) studied at Paris X University and later at the Jacques Lecoq Drama School. She began working as an actress in France and appeared in numerous plays by contemporary authors as well as plays by Molière, Marivaux, and Sacha Guitry. In 1987 she wrote Conversations after a Burial for which she won the prestigious Moliere Award for best author. Following its performance in France, the play was produced in translation in Europe and South America. Mary-Alice Stack |
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| Return to Conversations After a Burial (2006) | ||