Art, the contemporary classic play by Yasmina Reza, asks audiences difficult questions delivered in a sharp, witty package. The newest rendition produced by The Street Theatre hits the stage 5-11 September.  

Originally written in 1994, the play has had stints on Broadway, the West End and around the globe. Now, bringing it to a Canberra stage is director Shelly Higgs, in her first mainstage production with The Street Theatre. She says the play is a funny and thought-provoking story that makes us question if we are who we think we are, or are we who our friends think we are?

“The way I keep describing it is light, bright, sparkling, full of wit but you’ve got to be careful the bubbles don’t get up your nose. There’s a sharpness to it,” Higgs said.

The play follows three men – Serge, Marc and Yvan – who have been friends for 15 years. One day, the friendship is completely rocked when Serge has the audacity to purchase a piece of art without consulting the others; worse still, it is modern art. Higgs describes the conflict as Marc being deeply upset that Serge would buy it without his approval, as it breaks the way Marc perceived him.

The production is presented in monochrome with the outfits and the set reflecting this idea of seeing thing as black and white. Two of our central characters have cut-and-dried ideas of how things should be. However, in reality, there are shades of grey, which is reflected in the third character, Yvan, and his mismatched greys as he tries to reason with his friends. Higgs said they made the conscious effort of exploring these themes throughout the production while creating a playground for the actors to delve into the archetypes of their characters.

“You’re always saying something with the way you choose to do something, so it’s just being aware of what we are saying,” Higgs said.

When she isn’t busy directing, Higgs is a mum of four. Dealing with being away from her children more than usual is softened by knowing it’s good for them to see her work on something that is important.

“There’s a lot more packaged food in the fridge but at the same time they are seeing me do something that I have been working towards for 20 years,” Higgs said.

A major difference in preparing a mainstage production compared to the independent ones she has done with the company before, is the amount of time Higgs gets to spend focusing on her direction. Additional support means there are assigned staff for roles, and she no longer has to wear so many hats, which she believes benefits her directorial skill development.

“Having three professional actors in the room is great and especially because they all offer you different things. Shane has worked in comedy for so long, there’s a lot I can learn from him; it’s interesting even just observing when he laughs at something or when he makes a comic offer,” Higgs said.

According to Higgs, the actors’ chemistry off set has been great, while on set, the three characters present an odd kind of friendship, one that makes you question if they genuinely enjoy one another’s company or if they are accustomed to their way of life and those who come along with it.

“They have these little arrows at each other that really land, it’s sort of like the sibling relationship you might have or people that have had friends for 15 years or more, you sort of get to that stage; they know you too well,” she said.

The audience may be able to see something of themselves reflected in the characters. Higgs said she identifies with Yvan, the people please, while people who are sure of themselves and their opinions may see themselves reflected in Marc. Serge, our disrupter, is slightly easier going as he continues his journey of discovering new things.

“I don’t think we like any of the characters that well; there’s parts of them in each of us. They really do feel like archetypes to me but there’s complexity under that,” Higgs said.

Asked about her comedic play not long after it was released, Reza responded by saying she thought it was a tragedy. While this may have been tongue in cheek, there is truth to it, Higgs said; it discusses the value of friendships and how easily they can break down. The central artwork helps to focus questions of value – what we give value to, and why others may not value it the same.

The three actors were asked how they envisioned the artwork in question and, like their characters, each pictured something completely different. The design team has spent many hours deciding how the picture will look in production and asking if the audience should even see it. The big question remains: is it worth ending a 15-year friendship for? Audience members will decide that for themselves.

Find out if you’re Serge, Marc or Yvan in Art at The Street Theatre, 5-11 September; thestreet.org.au

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