Sage Theatre’s The Blue Room examines human relations
When David Hare’s The Blue Room played in London and on Broadway in 1998 much was made of the fact that actor Nicole Kidman offered the audience a brief flash of nudity. That along with theatre reviewer Charles Spencer’s iconic description of the show as “pure theatrical Viagra” helped boost ticket sales and made the production a financial success.
On the surface The Blue Room’ s premise is pretty sexy. In each of the 10 scenes a man and woman come together to have sex. There are actually five male characters and five female characters; each character is in two scenes making for 10 different couplings in a daisy-chain pattern where A is with B and B is with C and C is with D etc.
Sage Theatre artistic director Kelly Reay however says it’s not the sex that attracted him to the play.
“When you read about it there’s so much about the sex and the nudity but that’s not what it’s about for us. I’m fascinated by the play’s study of human behaviour” he says. “What it examines is how humans behave to get what they need from each other.”
The Blue Room is based on an early 20th century work by Austrian dramatist Arthur Schnitzler called Reigen (German) or La Ronde (French). Some interpretations of Schnitzler’s original say he was offering a critique of Austrian society and class ideology and that he also alludes to the spread of syphilis in the play — though he doesn’t mention it specifically. Needless to say La Ronde was considered scandalous for its day and a 1921 production in Vienna was shut down by police. In 1950 filmmaker Max Ophüls adapted the work for film also using the title La Ronde .
“Even though the original text was written more than 100 years ago when you compare The Blue Room to the original it’s virtually unchanged” says Reay though he notes the professions of the various characters are updated from things like a parlour maid to an au pair and the “Little Miss” to a model. Despite the many similarities Reay says sexually transmitted diseases don’t play a part in The Blue Room nor does any element of social critique.
“In The Blue Room with its modern sensibilities we’re assuming people are protecting themselves so the issue of STDs isn’t present” says Reay.
The play also offers audiences “slice-of-life” scenarios rather than forwarding one specific message. “Audience members can take their own messages from the play” he says.
The Blue Room examines how people behave differently depending on whom they are with. “The characters come from a wide range of social backgrounds. The play examines how we behave differently around someone who is of a lower status versus someone who is of a higher status. Where we fit into the social hierarchy determines our behaviour” says Reay.
He says the sex in the play — which is dealt with tastefully and never in a gratuitous manner — acts as the “common ground that transcends class and status in the bedroom.”
“Well not necessarily in the bedroom all the time” he quips with a bit of a laugh.
The play also examines issues like the different fallouts from sexual contact what love means in different types of relationships and the human quest for fulfillment.
“All of these characters are looking for fulfilment. In some cases that means sexual fulfilment but more often than not it’s about connection closeness and finding common ground” says Reay.
Two actors — Vanessa Holmes and Chad Nobert — portray the 10 characters who range in age from their late teens to their mid-40s.
Reay says Ophüls’s 1950 film inspired the set. “In the film there’s a great image of a carousel. That was our starting point. We’ve embraced the whimsy of a carousel reflective of the notions of the rounds of love. It’s quite abstract but it’s a nice contrast to the playing of the scenes which are very realistic and naturalistic” says Reay.
Adding to the production’s whimsical nature is Brendan McGuigan’s live accordion music which highlights the story.
