A theatrical fantasy meeting of historical greats
If two of the greatest minds of the 20th century, one skilled in artistry and the other in physics, sat down to have a conversation, what do you think they would discuss? Pablo Picasso and Albert Einstein were both brilliant in their own fields, but could they find common ground to have an intelligent and enlightening discussion?
If the idea of a conversation between these two pioneers of modernity intrigues you, then you definitely don’t want to miss The Ringgold Playhouse’s production of “Picasso at the Lapin Agile”, opening Thursday night at the historic Ringgold Depot.
“Picasso at the Lapin Agile” was written by Steve Martin in 1993 and was Martin’s first full-length play. The show is set in October 1904, one year before Einstein published his special theory of relativity and three years before Picasso painted “Les Demoiselles d’Avignon”.
The two men meet at the Lapin Agile, a well-known bar in the heart of Paris, and it’s there they have their conversation while interacting with other notable characters. There’s also another important figure in the future of the 20th century who arrives near the end.
TRP’s production is directed by Anthony Mrotek, who is making his directorial debut, and features a cast of 10. The cast started rehearsals in mid-July, giving them about a six-week rehearsal schedule.
“The basic idea with this particular show is that it’s kind of a love story to the 20th century; that’s the best way I can put it. It revolves around Picasso and Einstein. As far as we know, they didn’t actually meet at a bar in Paris,” explained Mrotek. “But it’s just an absurd idea of these two brilliant men, and brilliant in different fields, meeting in a bar and what it would be like in that night to have these two people there.”
An interesting aspect of the show is that the Lapin Agile, which, loosely translated, means “intelligent rabbit”, did actually exist. While the conversation between Einstein and Picasso may have been fictional, many of the elements surrounding it were not.
“I tend to think of the Lapin Agile as not really a dive but not really high-end either; it’s right there in the middle. People know it; you go to a hotel, they’ll send you there for some good drinks,” Mrotek said. “The idea with this bar, or at least the original bar, is that painters really did hang out there. It was a real bar, and some of these characters are real people. Freddy, he was the guy who owned the bar, and he did exist.”
Because the entirety of the show is this one October night in 1904, the set doesn’t change much; essentially, there’s the bar, three tables, and the characters themselves. In classic Steve Martin fashion, the dialogue is one of the most important aspects of the show, and each character has a specific role they play in the story.
“There’s two women who also show up at the bar that night, and I always tend to think of them as the smartest two people in the room. Einstein and Picasso are smart at what they know, but Suzanne and Germaine are smarter than everybody else in life,” Mrotek explained.
“And there’s love stories involved with this; between the females and other males in the bar. They all play different roles in life. It’s just the interpersonal connection between all these different folks in the bar and what happens over the period of one night.”
As far as inspiration for the show goes, Mrotek said they’re incorporating both art and mathematics into the costumes and set; different costumes will be influenced by different works of art, and there will be different instances of the rule of threes making an appearance on stage.
Additionally, Mrotek has always been a fan of Steve Martin; he said that when he was younger, he found a book that had four of Martin’s plays in it, and “Picasso at the Lapin Agile” was one of them. He’s probably read the play at least a hundred times over the years, which is why he can actually visualize and hear Steve Martin during rehearsals.
“So it’s really stuck with me, and some of his other works have really stuck with me, and I love a lot of his movies. So that’s why I say I can see him and see his delivery on a lot of things, and that’s why I’ve kind of had to tell the actors, ‘Don’t do it this way’. Because it’s so easy to imitate him on some of these lines, and he’s brilliant; his understanding of these characters is far deeper than I will ever come across.”
“Picasso at the Lapin Agile” opens Thursday night at 7:30 p.m. at the Ringgold Depot and will have a seven-performance run through September 7. Tickets are $8–$10 and can be purchased on Eventbrite.com or at the door. If you’ve ever wanted a chance to experience an enlightening conversation like no other, then you definitely don’t want to miss TRP’s production of “Picasso at the Lapin Agile” to close out the 2019 season.