by Marcie Ortega
Daily Lobo
The comedy about a madwoman is as serious as it gets.
UNM's Department of Theatre and Dance will present "The Madwoman of Chaillot" starting Friday in Rodey Theatre.
Director Denise Schulz said the comedy parallels modern times because it touches on the topic of greed.
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"It deals with what I call the greedy ones, corporations that are willing to destroy the world to get rich," Schulz said.
The comedy, written by Jean Giraudoux in 1945, takes place in Paris where a prospector has discovered oil beneath the city and plans to blow up the city to reach it.
Junior Babak Gharaei-Tafti, who plays the oil prospector, said there are a lot of similarities between the play and current situations involving the resource. He compares it to the oil situation in Alaska.
"You see these corporate people who are willing to dig for oil anywhere," he said. "Where there is oil, there is money."
Senior Merritt Glover will lead the cast of 24 students as Countess Aurelia, the Madwoman of Chaillot, who discovers the corporation's plot and takes on the antagonists with the help of her cohorts.
Glover compares the play to George Orwell's novel, 1984, in that it seems to predict modern circumstances.
"I think that this piece was written before its time," she said.
Glover said the play does not form an opinion, but rather calls attention to current situations.
"It just gets people to think," she said.
Schulz describes Glover's performance as in the moment.
"She's right there," Schulz said. "She has the ability to create a very broad-stroked character in this sort of whimsical style and make it totally believable in that world."
The play will also incorporate an arena-style set. Rodey Theatre was transformed so the audience surrounds the stage from all directions. Schulz said the set, designed by faculty member John Malolepsy, is more theatrical and describes the experience as looking at a piece of sculpture instead of a painting.
"What theater should be is a different experience from seeing a movie," she said. "It should engage the audience."
Engage the audience, it will. The cafÇ stage will have a few tables surrounding it that audience members have the option of sitting at and will be incorporated into the performance.
Glover, who is working with the style for the first time, said it pushes the envelope.
"I think it adds to the overall concept of environmental theater and blends the lines of reality for the audience," she said.
Junior Heather Yeo, who plays a waitress, said the play was her first experience with the arena set as well.
"It brings an immediacy to the audience," she said "And as an actor, it brings intimacy to the project."
Schulz said although the play carries serious overtones, it is important to remember it is a comedy.
"It makes us laugh about our situation," she said. "But at the same time it makes us think about it."
