Has anybody seen 4:48 Psychosis?

[Fantod]

Posted: 10/22/14 at 3:10am

It looks super wacky and I would love to know more about it. For those of you who don't know, it's playing at St. Ann's Warehouse until October 26

[MusicAndPassion]

Posted: 10/22/14 at 6:41am

I've read all of Sarah Kane's plays and wrote a thesis on them. 4:48 Psychosis is by far the most haunting, especially since it turned out to be Kane's final work and (many have argued) her suicide letter.

Are you familiar with Sarah Kane's work? They are a quick read, really graphic, and intense. I love how Tinker (a British critic) despised her work in Blasted and then in Cleansed she names a Nazi-eqsue sadist Tinker. I hate to say she's one of my favorite playwrights, because what will that say about me?

I can't catch this production, but it looks like a near perfect staging. Please see if it you can! It's in Polish with subtitles, but I've read the play a few times and I think it will translate well.

[Fantod]

Posted: 10/22/14 at 11:08am

Unfortunately, unless I have teleportation powers, I won't be able to see this. It does seem to be one of the darkest plays I have ever heard of, and I just wonder what it would feel like on stage. Maybe a company around SF will do the play sometime in the future.

[ColorTheHours048]

Posted: 10/22/14 at 3:07pm

I saw it the other night. I would never in a million years describe it as "wacky." I wouldn't even use the word "dark." It's a suicide note turned into a theatrical piece and the production at St. Ann's puts that idea right at the center. Magdalena Cielecka is basically a stand-in for Sarah Kane and the text is turned into a series of scenes between her and her lover, her doctor, and a friend/sibling, as well as a few solo moments (the final moments are especially chilling).

It isn't a satisfying evening at the theatre by any means. Not for me, at least. It's hard to pull that off when you know the history behind it and the text itself is so bleak. But was it effective? 100%. You're meant to be watching a woman ping-pong between hopeless despair and begging for love/rescue and eventually giving over to death willingly. It isn't fun or nice or pretty or "wacky," but it's one hell of an eye-opener. And Magdalena Cielecka is absolutely heart-stopping.

[Fantod]

Posted: 10/22/14 at 3:13pm

Okay wacky was probably the wrong word. Thanks for sharing your experience.

[aaronb]

Posted: 10/24/14 at 6:14pm

I think Michael Billington nailed it when he asked, "How do you judge a 75-minute suicide note?"