Monday, March 24, 2025
A look back at CMU Drama’s ‘Ghosts’ with director Carlos E. Martínez
The Tartan: Carnegie Mellon School of Drama’s production of “Ghosts” was showcased from Feb. 26 to March 1 in the Philip Chosky Theater at the Purnell Center for the Arts. Many people poured themselves into this adaptation of Henrik Ibsen’s “Ghosts,” from the actors, to the dramaturgs, to the scenic designers. To better understand “Ghosts,” I had the opportunity to talk to the director, Carlos E. Martínez, who provided insight into the work and motivation behind the production.
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3 comments:
I am so happy that Ghosts and Carlos were highlighted in an article. I absolutely loved the production and thought that it was very well done from all aspects. Having originally read the classic Ibsen for Design for the Stage with Dick and Mindy, I had some prior knowledge of the text before seeing Carlo’s adaptation. I am glad I did as I feel it helped me appreciate Carlo’s specific choices, such as adding Johanna as a physical character and changing Pastor Manders into Reverend Mother. I had never considered Ghosts to be an AIDS play but it does make sense when you think about it. This also makes sense as to how it fits into Carlo’s directing multiverse, with doing a very obvious AIDS play, Lonely Planet last year and now Ghosts for his thesis. As someone in the queer community I love seeing classics adapted in a way that explores queer experiences, as queer people have always exsited and will continue to exist, regardless of whether or not it is featured in the art of the time. I hope that Carlo continues to explore these themes in future work.
I love this! I obviously know Carlos well as he taught my class fundamentals of directing. I was also able to see ghosts and heard a lot about it and its process. Something that I was thinking about when reading this article was how fortunate we are to go to a school that is able to do these productions in ways that trigger conversations about things like the AIDs epidemic or the LGTBQIA+ community. When I heard that we planned to gender bend the reverend I was fascinated. Gender bending a role like that changes the entire story and highlights new themes and societal viewpoints. Another thing I was thinking about was how interesting it was to hear Carlos' story. It makes me sad that I sat in his class for an entire semester and did not get to hear how he came to choose this show to represent the end of his educational career.
Ghosts by Henrik Ibsen and a very intriguing play, although I do think I am partial to A Doll’s House myself rather than Ghosts. I was introduced to the script in the fall when doing design for the stage as that was our first play to study in that class. Then I worked with Carlos on Flores Para Los Muertos in December and it was so cool to see both my own thoughts about the play and the elements of the workshop we did together come to fruition in his production of Ghosts on the Chosky. Pardon my pun, but it was very haunting and was a very beautiful rendition of the classic play. I think Carlos is an excellent director and I am very excited to see where his eye, talent, and choices of work take him next on his journey, particularly outside of Carnegie Mellon. I’m so glad he got a feature.
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