Pittsburgh Tribune-Review: Bringing Graham Greene's novel of obsessive love to the stage has been something of an obsession for Karla Boos. The founder and artistic director of Quantum Theatre has spent a large part of the past year reading, adapting and plotting the transfer of "The End of the Affair" from page to stage. Audiences can experience the result starting Thursday, when the production begins performances at the former Emma Kaufmann Clinic on Polish Hill.
Friday, October 07, 2011
Quantum founder finally brings novel of obsessive love to stage
Pittsburgh Tribune-Review: Bringing Graham Greene's novel of obsessive love to the stage has been something of an obsession for Karla Boos. The founder and artistic director of Quantum Theatre has spent a large part of the past year reading, adapting and plotting the transfer of "The End of the Affair" from page to stage. Audiences can experience the result starting Thursday, when the production begins performances at the former Emma Kaufmann Clinic on Polish Hill.
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4 comments:
The process of transforming a novel into a play is fascinating. I wish I could have seen that process. It would be so interesting to compare the novel, films, opera, and play and how the different adaptations affect the reader or audience. I absolutely love Quantum theatre and the projects they take on. I hope to be able to see this production. How exciting it seems to be to sit so close to the action of the play! It must also be very exciting to perform the show in a non theatrical space; almost like being right at the moment of the action of inside a camera and thrown into the movie.
This is definitely something that I intend on seeing. Environmental theater, I think, has the most capacity to really affect an audience, because they really have no choice to sit back and zone out if they are, effectively, being treated as a character in the show. Immersing the audience in the action makes for an extremely impressive and thought provoking reaction. To have the founder adapt the script, too, gives me very high expectations for the production.
Bringing a novel to the stage must be a difficult process. The idea of having to stage everything that has been previously laid out in text format for a reader to take in is daunting, but at the same time rewarding for writers and audiences alike when it goes over well. I would be particularly interested in seeing this piece because the aftermath of World War II both on relationships and in society as a whole is a subject which has continued to fascinate me. Everything that occurred during that time is such raw material for theatrical transformation, which is why I believe this transformation has a true opportunity to turn out well. It is also good to see those from a local theatre such as the Quantum, which I know some of our faculty have worked on performances for themselves, working on a project as unique as this.
I find it amazing how Quantum decides to stage their shows, especially one as raw and passionate as The End of an Affair. The audience has no choice but to be transported into the world of the play and be deeply effected by the goings on of the show. I think their process of transforming a novel into a play is very interesting considering their unique performance style. Kudos!
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