Steppenwolf Theatre Company Blog – Chicago Theater, World-Class Ensemble

Recently, during a post show discussion for Art, a young man in his mid-20’s and his grandfather took seats in the front row. The younger man held his grandfather’s arm as they came down the steps to sit closer for the discussion, whispering to him, “Watch your step” and “Just one more stair.” I was touched.

Moments later, after a few questions, grandson and grandfather were deep in heated debate: now the young man sat leaning away from the older man as the older man stared straight ahead, muttering quietly under his breath.

A fellow audience member had suggested that the dialogue in Art between Serge, Mark and Yvan “did not feel realistic or authentic” and that while he really enjoyed the play, he did not know any men who speak to each other this way. The older man sitting in the front row adamantly agreed, affirming that this type of interaction is more characteristic of women. His grandson, at first politely but then with growing animosity, “could not have disagreed more,” citing several examples of recent instances in which he and his friends have had these very conversations, spoken with the same honesty, tenderness and acrimony as Reza’s characters. The older man refused to change his mind, the younger man blushed in embarrassment and I was jubilant!

This is what I love about Reza’s Art. During each discussion I lead, I ask audience members whether they see themselves reflected in the images of these characters and almost unanimously, they do, but in vastly different ways. It has been suggested that this play cannot resonate with the iPod generation — that young people won’t relate because we don’t own property or have ex-wives or that erudite debates don’t interest us. As one (also younger) audience member put it during another discussion, “I am one part Serge, one part bossy, overbearing Mark and one part Yvan, especially on days when I just feel like screaming at the world!”

For those of you who might worry about the lasting impacts of the aforementioned debate, don’t worry - after the discussion, the young man dutifully hurried off to fetch his grandfather’s car to spare him the rain and slick sidewalks. While we waited together, the older man was sure to tell me proudly, “My grandson is single and very smart and sensitive, too!”

This entry was posted by Megan Shuchman on Monday, April 27th, 2009 at 9:00 am and is filed under Art. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.