Diary of a Madman: Fundraising Performance

This spring, a select group of schools invited from across the globe will meet in the Czech Republic for Setkání/Encounter. While it may sound like the title of the latest William Gibson novel, Setkání is actually a five day gathering of the world's most promising young theatrical talent. On April 15, schools from Europe, South Africa, and North America will join in the city of Brno to perform their winning selections. A group of students and alumni from Theatre UBC have been among the few chosen to present their work and discuss their methodology at this years' event.

The Vancouver troupe has been asked to make the journey to re-stage 2007's Diary of a Madman. The play is an original theatrical adaptation of Gogol's classic short story, the tale of a middle class Russian's descent into complete lunacy. For me, watching the experimental production was a singular experience, and it seems I'm not alone in my admiration for this unique piece of darkly droll dream-theatre.

With fourteen schools selected to join in this year's festival, the group from UBC will be the only Canadian program represented. In fact, they'll be joining a performance from New York's Columbia University as the festival's first ever North American selections. The cast and crew are currently fund raising, as plane tickets to the Czech Republic apparently don't come on the cheap. So on Saturday night they'll be presenting a special, one night re-staging of Diary in order to help with the finances. Admission is by donation, and I recommend that everyone with an empty Saturday night seize what may be their last opportunity to see the performance...

Based on the famous story by Russian master Nikolai Gogol, the play follows middle-class clerk Poprishchin as he falls in love with his boss' daughter while battling a mean case of schizophrenia. It's a universal story of the human condition: man falls in love, finds rejection, and slowly begins to believe that said woman's dogs are writing conspiratorial love-letters. The original is written in the form of a twenty-page diary, but the translation to stage is executed with surprising success by an obviously confident David Savoy.

I caught the play when it debuted last year, and found it to be the freshest, most memorable piece of theater I saw in 2007. Staged with audacity, this pitch-black comedic-nightmare finds a cast of five dressed mainly in dark black costumes on an austere stage. So much finds expression in the dance and words of the players on stage, as they shift between human and animal, sometimes even becoming elements of the set themselves. The deluge of hallucinogenic images these actors are able to evoke on stage is addictive.

The performance is downright frightening, at times almost claustrophobic in its minimalism, but utterly gripping from start to finish. The inventive adaption by Savoy is entirely unique and stylishly staged by the cast and crew of UBC grads and students. It's no wonder they've been invited to perform at Setkání/Encounter, and a repeat presentation here in town before their European trip is nothing but a privilege.

Help ensure that our city's (hell, our country's) burgeoning artistic talent is paid its due respect by the international theatre community. I heard beers cheap in former communist states; so once they secure the money for travel and accommodation, they should be good-to-go. If Saturday's fund raising performance gets the attention it deserves, the troupe will be well on their way.

Diary of a Madman will be performed at the Frederic Wood Theatre (6354 Crescent Rd, UBC) at 7:30, admission by donation

The play was conceived completely by Theatre UBC students and alumni; for full details on the cast and crew visit Theatre UBC

For details on becoming a sponsor, call Deb Pickman at 604.319.7656

photos courtesy of Fabrice Grover