Marat/Sade is not for sissies. It is a play within a play, it’s set in a Paris mental asylum in 1808, where the Marquis de Sade, is directing a production to be performed by the asylum inmates. First performed in 1963, the play is a depiction of class struggle and human angst.
“The conversations between Marat and Sade as iconic and revolutionary philosophers are emblematic of the conversations we aim to catalyse,” said producer Grace Meadows. “Yes, 2014 is a celebration of 20 years of freedom in South Africa, but aligned to [University of Johannesburg] UJ’s ‘Rethink. Reinvent’, positioning Marat/Sade is our Arts & Culture meditation on the ideas and ideals of freedom from a global perspective,” she added.
It pays homage to the French Revolution – the play within the play recounts the murder of politician and radical journalist Jean-Paul Marat, who was stabbed to death by Charlotte Corday. Marat, a Jacobin, played a major role in the purge of the more liberal Girondins, with whom Corday sympathised.
In the play, the inmates are excited to be performing a play, even more so under the direction of the famed and feared Marquis de Sade, who for most of the first act sits with eyes wide and teeth exposed, strapped to a restraint chair. To say that, two hours of screaming, jumping, gurgling and gyrating is uncomfortable, is an understatement. Seconds of monologue are interrupted by screams of support and solidarity; and sometimes the threat of a Taser gun, resulting in the “mob” dispersing, each individual occupying a corner while clapping their hands, chewing their lips or touching themselves. All are clad in white clothing and some stained with blood in unsightly places. Desperate people; imprisoned, confused and sad.
Mothusi Magano’s performance as the Marquis, is convincing, he’s frightening, sick, intelligent and madly sane all in one. Marat, played by Jacques Bessenger, takes center stage – literally. He sits in a bath of various minerals and medicines, to soothe his severe skin disease which he suffered with most of his life.
The play won the Tony Award in 1965. Its multi-faceted faces are applicable yesterday, today and tomorrow and I don’t need a reference to Zimbabwe to send the message home. Perhaps we, in the 21st century have become too abstract and we don’t want words to tell us what we’re looking at. But if you want words, and you feel you can cope with a lengthy display of mental illness, go see the play – you’ll find it relevant, poignant and deeply disturbing.
Marat/Sade is running at University of Johannesburg’s Arts Centre Theatre, until 26 April.
