The Celebration (Play)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Celebration is the English translation of the title of Danish writer and director Thomas Vinterberg's 1998 movie Festen. The movie has been adapted for the stage in several countries and languages. The version which began at the Almeida theatre in London, England and which subsequently appeared at the Lyric Theatre and then at the Music Box Theatre in New York was written by English playwright David Eldridge.
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[edit] The Story
As in the original movie described in the Wikipedia article The Celebration, Festen satirises the hypocrisy of a large and wealthy family by observing the events that unfold at the ancestral home during a reunion held to celebrate the oldest family member's 60th birthday.
As the time arises for birthday speeches to be made to the party's subject, one of his sons stands and asks the assembled guests to choose which of two prepared speeches he should read. The guests select one not knowing its contents, and the son declares it the "truth speech". As he begins to talk, it becomes dramatically clear that he is not praising his father but accusing him of having abused him and his sister over a period of years during their childhood. The rest of the story traces the family's turbulent battle with the truth to discover whether the son's cold rage is justified or the product of a deranged imagination.
[edit] London Theatres
Under the film's original title of Festen, this story has had two critically acclaimed and successful runs at theatres in London, England: beginning at the smaller Almeida and then transferring to larger Lyric theatre in the West End. Afterwards the production became a UK national tour.
[edit] The Almeida Theatre Production
This production, adapted for the stage by David Eldridge, was the first in the UK and ran until the 1st May 2004 before transferring to the Lyric Theatre.
[edit] The Lyric Theatre Production
This was the run that moved from its original base at the Almeida. It was adventurous in casting Jane Asher, formerly known in Britain as a celebrity socialite, mainstream film actor and even as a cook, in a starring role. More significantly, it was innovative in several aspects of staging and performance on top of a conventional, or even classically, plotted story. The Lyric Theatre production ran from the 15th September 2004 until the 9th April 2005.
The play was acclaimed in British broadsheets for its powerful use of humour which served to further accentuate the numerous darker moments, a technique particularly effective since one of its aims was to highlight the characters' dispassionate hypocrisy.
[edit] Awards
The production was nominated for 5 Olivier awards in 2005. The production also won both the Evening Standard and Critics Circle Best Director Awards and the Evening Standard Best Designer award.
[edit] New York
The New York production ran on Broadway at the Music Box Theatre from March 23 2006 until April 9th 2006.
This production was still based on David Eldridge's script and retained director Rufus Norris and designer Ian McNeil, but was recast with American actors.
The production opened to unspectacular reviews, and a lack of sales success has meant that only this single short run has been performed in the States so far.
[edit] Mexico CIty
The Mexico City production began November 2 2006 at the Centro Cultural Helenico Theatre, and is expected to run until December 31 2006.
Diego Luna, as Christian, has been the main draw of this production, which in its first week has been playing to sold-out audiences. Diana Bracho appears as Elsa, José María Yazpik as Michael, Mónica Dionne as Helene and Luis Rábago as Helge.
