'Art' (play)

Infobox Play
name = ‘Art’


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caption =
writer = Yasmina Reza
characters = Serge
Marc
Yvan
setting = The Paris apartments of Serge, Marc, and Yvan
subject = Art, friendship
genre = Comedy
web =
date of premiere = 28 October 1994
country of Origin = FRA
original language = French
ibdb_id = 1693

"‘Art’" is a French language play by Yasmina Reza, translated into English by Christopher Hampton and opened in London's West End in 1994.

The comedy, which raises questions about art and friendship, concerns three long-time friends, Serge, Marc, and Yvan. Serge, indulging his penchant for modern art, buys a large, expensive, completely white painting. Marc is horrified, and their relationship suffers considerable strain as a result of their differing opinions about what constitutes "art". Yvan, caught in the middle of the conflict, tries to please and mollify both of them.

The play is not divided into acts and scenes in the traditional manner, but it does nevertheless fall into sections (numbered 1-17 by Pigeat). cite book | title=« Art » | last=Pigeat | first=Aurélien | publisher=Hatier | location=Paris | year=2005 | language=French | isbn=2218750899] Some of these are dialogues between two characters, several are monologues where one of the characters addresses the audience directly, and one is a conversation among all three. At the beginning and end of the play, and for most of the scenes set in Serge's flat, the large white painting is on prominent display.

Plot

Set in Paris, the story revolves around three friends—Serge, Marc and Yvan—who find their previously solid 15-year friendship on shaky ground when Serge buys an expensive painting.The canvas is white, with a few white lines...

Serge is proud of his 200,000 franc acquisition fully expecting the approval of his friends.

Marc scornfully describes it as "a piece of white shit," but is it the painting that offends him, or the uncharacteristic independence-of-thought that the purchase reveals in Serge?

For the insecure Yvan, burdened by the problems of his impending wedding and his dissatisfaction at his job as a stationery salesman, their friendship is his sanctuary...but his attempts at peace-making backfire. Eager to please he laughs about the painting with Marc but tells Serge he likes it. Pulled into the disagreement, his vacillations fuel the blazing row.

Lines are drawn and they square off over the canvas, using it as an excuse to relentlessly batter one another over various failures. As their arguments become less theoretical and more personal, they border on destroying their friendship.

When somebody pays a fortune for a plain white canvas, is it because they understand the intrinsic value of art...or are they just plain gullible? Does friendship mean keeping quiet or telling the truth? Are your friends who they are, or are they who you think they are? These are the issues. At the end it is a lie that saves their friendship and the lie, of course, is white.

Productions

The original French version, directed by Patrice Kerbrat, opened on October 28, 1994 at the Comédie des Champs-Élysées in Paris, with Fabrice Luchini as Serge, Pierre Arditi as Yvan and Pierre Vaneck as Marc.

;West EndThe West End production, directed by Matthew Warchus, opened on October 15, 1996 at Wyndham's Theatre, where it remained for five years. It then transferred to the Whitehall Theatre for an additional fifteen months. Albert Finney, Tom Courtenay, and Ken Stott comprised the original cast, with George Segal, Paul Freeman, and Richard Griffiths also playing together.

;BroadwayAfter twenty previews, the Broadway production, also directed by Warchus, opened on March 1, 1998 at the Royale Theatre, where it ran for 600 performances. Alan Alda, Victor Garber, and Alfred Molina comprised the original cast. The same year, Molina was nominated for a Tony Award for his performance, and the play won the Tony Award for best original play. Brian Cox, Buck Henry, Judd Hirsch, Wayne Knight, Joe Morton, George Segal, and George Wendt were among the replacements later in the run.

;Other productionsThe play also was presented in Berlin in 1995, Moscow in 1997, Madrid in 1998, Lima in 2006, Hong Kong, Prague in 2007 and Stuttgart in 2008. Also in Thessaloniki, Greece in 2008.

A professional version toured Suffolk village halls in Spring 2008, as part of the Bury St. Edmunds Festival. It was produced by the Theatre Royal, Bury St Edmunds.

Was performed at the Shadowland Theatre in Ellenville, New York in June 2008, starring Judd Hirsch as Marc.

'Art' was also produced in 2008 as part of the Vancouver Fringe Festival, with newcomers Sodai Shimizu as Serge, Costin Andrei as Marc, and Stephen Bejamin Fowler as Yvan.

Awards and nominations

;Awards
* 1998 Evening Standard Award for Best Comedy
* 1998 Laurence Olivier Award for Best Comedy
* 1998 Molière Award for Best Commercial Production
* 1998 New York Drama Critics' Circle Best Play
* 1998 Tony Award for Best Play;Nominations
* 1998 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding New Play

References

External links

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