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The Europeans

by Howard Barker

Whistler in the Dark Theatre

2011@ The Factory Theatre

 

  • Hubbie Award Best Performance (Jen O'Connor)

  • IRNE Award nomination Best Actress Drama (Jen O'Connor)

We've got to invent the European now, from broken bits.

​

Vienna. 1683. The combined Polish and Viennese armies have beaten back the Turkish force. In the aftermath of the siege, the city's survivors begin to build their society anew. The Emperor and Empress would like order restored, and the poor just want to survive, but Starhemberg, the general responsible for the salvation of the city, and Katrin, a wounded citizen, seek to forge a new world out of the ashes of the old. 

A harrowing love story, and an exploration of our personal freedoms and choices inside the maddening political structures that control our lives. 

"This thoughtful production provides more proof that Taintor and her talented company has a keen eye and ear for the poetry and passion of this difficult but fascinating playwright. And, coming from the old painmeister, The Europeans provides a surprisingly redemptive vision. “I want an art which will recall pain,” pleads Starhemberg, “The art that will be all flourishes and celebration. I want an art that will plummet through the floor of consciousness and free the unborn self. The art that will be extravagant and dazzling.” Whistler in the Dark provides more than enough razzle and dazzle, as well as huzzahs and hurt, to make this production of The Europeans meet the anti-hero’s demands.."

 

The Arts Fuse <read here>

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