Janus Theatre set to open 'Art' by Yasmina Reza, kick off 19th season
The Janus Theatre Company will open "Art" by Yasmina Reza this month in downtown Elgin.
The Tony-Award winning comedy asks the question 'What is art?' and examines how this impacts the lives of three close friends.
The production runs Nov. 10-19 inside the main gallery at Elgin Artspace Lofts, 51 S. Spring St. in downtown Elgin.
The play is directed by Sean Hargadon, stage managed and codirected by Tara Schuman, with art direction by Erin Conroy and technical design by Andy Murschel. The cast includes Michael Wagman of Chicago, Justin Schaller of Elgin and Hargadon of Elgin.
To purchase tickets to performances, visit www.janusplays.com. Or purchase tickets directly at www.jtcart.eventbrite.com. Check out the Facebook page at Janus Theatre's Inspired by Art.
About the play
How much would you pay for a white painting? Would it matter who the painter was? Would it be art? One of Marc's best friends, Serge, has just bought a very expensive painting. It's all white with some faint white diagonal lines.
To Marc, the painting is a joke, but Serge insists Marc doesn't have the proper standard to judge the work.
Another friend, Ivan, though burdened by his own problems, allows himself to be pulled into this disagreement and proclaims he likes the painting. This sets off a fierce debate over the canvas, using it as an excuse to relentlessly attack one another and test their friendship.
"We chose 'Art' because it's a comedy with some bite to it," Hargadon said. "It opens with the characters debating about art and then quickly changes into personal attacks. It has a sense of humor that changes into something serious at the end."
About the 19th season
Janus Theatre's 19th season is called "Inspired By ….".
This project will explore three plays that attempt to understand through theater the creation, debate, and removal of the mural "American Nocturne" in Elgin during 2016. The mural was taken down from a public location where it had been on display for approximately 10 years. It was discovered that the mural's image represented a partial depiction of a lynching that was photographed decades earlier. While the mural did not show the actual lynching, the scene depicted a crowd of people reacting to something just out of site of the viewer. When the inspiration for the mural became known, the City of Elgin hosted public meetings and ultimately decided to take the mural down. The mural has been in storage ever since. The "Inspired By …" project approaches the subject of art and culture in the community by asking three questions separately in each of the plays: What is art? Why do we make art and who is for? How do we talk about race? The 2017-18 season opens by asking: What is art and is explored through the Tony-winning play "Art" by Yasmina Reza.
The Elgin Artspace Lofts is a $15.2 million mixed-use project that created 55 units of affordable live/work space for artists and their families, plus 5,874 square feet of retail and community space for arts-friendly businesses and nonprofit organizations. The historic Sears structure, occupied most recently by Elgin Community College, has been completely renovated and linked to a new addition. The City of Elgin and the Elgin arts community were the driving forces behind the project, working with Artspace to plan and develop the facility. Elgin's residents and civic leaders believe that permanently affordable space for artists will strengthen an emerging arts and culture cluster in downtown Elgin, serve as a catalyst for continued development, bring vibrancy and activity to the street and increase the number of individuals and families living and working downtown.
To learn more about the 2017-18 "Inspired By …" season and to purchase tickets to performances, please go to www.janusplays.com. Or purchase tickets directly at www.jtcart.eventbrite.com. Check out www.facebook.com/janustheatre/.
Janus Theatre's season is sponsored, in part, by the Elgin Cultural Arts Commission, the City of Elgin and the Elgin Art Showcase.