Hanaya Yanagihara’s bestselling novel is disorienting
Little Life
came out seven years ago, given its iron grip on culture. One345 – Pages Epic Pain, Friendship, Changing Queer, Exploitation and Shame follows the lives of four college friends whose operatic highs and lows inspire The constant discussion, also fueled by praise for its graphic depictions of child sexual abuse and self-harm, denounces its striking prose and scope. The Atlantic called it “the great gay novel”;
The New York Review of Books considers it a “striptease” (derogatory).
Love or Hate, 750 The book left an immediate, indelible mark. “Not a contemporary classic, [but] an instant classic,” noted stage director Ivo van Hove. “It was never a ‘new novel’. Instantly turned into a mythical figure, it’s weird to think about. It talks about horrific things – the structural violence and sexual abuse of a seven-year-old boy until he reaches adulthood years old, cruel, lifelong consequences of this trauma. How can it attract so many people?”
in the US with his confrontation of Broadway landmarks Known for his sexual adaptations Side Story and Network, the Dutch drama producer A limited run of BAM’s novel now brings his take on Yanagihara. Premiered on 671 with his Toneelgroep Amsterdam company in the Netherlands, and then a brief stop in Edinburgh, the production ran for just over four hours, with many hurdles to cross before coming together. The first: Convince Van Hoof and his husband and longtime collaborator, production designer Jan Versweyveld, to believe the hype.
“I thought, ‘Okay, another gay story…why?'” Van Hoof quipped. “I don’t care.” But after enough friends persuaded him to read, his views changed overnight, and as with Versweyveld’s, he wondered how its stories spanning decades and continents might translate into what they are now Known for its minimalist, live aesthetics.
“The book goes deep into your skin, and then all I know is that the core part of the set design should be something related to Jude as a character,” Versweyveld said, focusing on the book’s protagonist, and its big Partial trauma bearer. “At a very early stage, we decided that the centerpiece of the stage would be the skin—a large chunk of human-colored skin that conveys [Jude’s] vulnerability.”
Jude’s many health Problems, stemming from various forms of abuse, threw him into a morbid life – his affinity made him worse by cutting himself on the sink. His story reminds Versweyveld of the work of artist Francis Bacon, whose paintings often include “hygiene items” such as toilets and sinks. Thus, the standing sink becomes an integral part of the work, and Van Hove balances his empathy with clinical ruthlessness and dramatic tension.
Majd Mardo as JB, Maarten Heijmans as Willem, Ramsey Nasr as Jude, Mandela Wee Wee as Malcolm.
“You know when he starts looking at the sink, he cuts himself again, so that’s what we use as well” One aspect of “through”, [also added] a little suspense,” the director said. “We tried all of these tools to make it as visceral as possible so you’re not looking at anything, but in the story.”
Stage production is a painful experience. The Guardian noted that its speech in Edinburgh was “not for the faint of heart”. The audience sits on either side of the action, which van Hove says “creates a huge sense of intimacy, but also unity, because you’re always seeing people who are also looking at things you shouldn’t be watching. ” In some scenes, there is a faint ether smell. A string quartet playing what Versweyveld describes as “pretty radical” – somewhere between classic Bernard Herrmann scores and more eerie modern dissonances – builds on the pair’s creative experiments in theatrical immersion. above history.
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“On different levels and at different moments,” Versweyveld noted of the Edinburgh and Amsterdam shows, “at least one or two The individual fainted and the show had to stop. I think for some people, everything they see on stage – the cuts, the violence, the medical treatment, the scents we use, is really very confrontational. very strong. “
“The book is strong, and we want people to feel the same way,” Van Hoof added. “But that’s the challenge. its350 pages; if fast, it will take a week or two to read. I told Hanya, ‘We only have four hours to give people the same feeling,’ so we tried to be minimalist and make the most of it. “
If these decisions led to painful experiences, they also paid off – at least in the minds of critics, more importantly It’s for its creator Yanahara, who met Van Hove and Versweyveld before the show’s Amsterdam premiere. “She was in Amsterdam on opening night and was openly very positive about the production,” Van Hove said. “It all started with a Dutch hardcover book on my desk in Amsterdam, and on the first page, she sent a message that she would be honored if I could bring it to the stage. “
Early discussion on how to best fit in Little Life climaxed when Van Hove made a comment about good and evil; Yanagihara retorted that this dichotomy shouldn’t be the subject of the show. “I gave her time to deal with what other people would do with it. idea,” he continued. “At some point, I said to her, ‘I’m going to take your baby and I’m going to raise it in a way that you might not like at times. So you have to say yes or no; nothing in between. With her seal of approval for the project, from conception abroad to return to the United States, Van Hove reflects that the work’s most prominent theme is simply “Friendship and Love.”
“I think Hanya is a great writer because she writes very precise and never sentimental about anything,” he said. “The book was so successful because she didn’t Judging by it, she just described this horrific process in a man’s life. There is a beautiful saying in Latin: amor vincit omnia
. “Love conquers all.” In this case, love does not conquer all. But it’s a good thing. “
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