The Chairs Play at Mishkal Festival 2012

As part of the Mishkal Festival 2012, the play “The Chairs,” written by Eugene Ionesco and directed by Raneem Al Halaby, will be performed on September 18.

Summary:

The play concerns two characters, known as Old Man and Old Woman, frantically preparing chairs for a series of invisible guests who are coming to hear an orator reveal the old man’s discovery, which is implied as being the meaning of life (it is never actually said). The guests supposedly include “everyone,” implying everyone in the world; there are other implications that this is a post-apocalyptic world. The Old Man, for example, speaks of the destruction of Paris. The invisibility of the guests implies that the Old Man and Old Woman are the last two people on the planet. As the “guests” arrive, the two characters speak to them, and reminisce cryptically about their lives. A high point in the happiness of the couple is reached when the invisible emperor arrives. Finally, the orator arrives to deliver his speech to the assembled crowd. Played by a real actor, the orator’s physical presence contradicts the expectations set up earlier in the play for the audience.