If you go
What: CU Presents Production of “Everyman,” adapted by Carol Ann Duffy
When: Feb. 23 to March 4
Where: University Theatre, University of Colorado campus, Boulder
Cost: $20
More info: 303-492-8008, cupresents.org
The first audiences for “Everyman” didn’t take in the drama from the staid, silent vantage of a plush theater seat.
The play, also known as “The Summoning of Everyman,” debuted in the late 15th century, and audience members were just as liable to watch the action from a stool in a village public house as they were from a seat in any formal theater. The show was a morality play designed to spread lessons rooted in Christian values and morals; it sought to teach the basic tenets of salvation to the European masses, many of whom couldn’t read.
The function of the version of “Everyman” that’s set to run at CU’s University Theater from Feb. 23 to March 4 is a bit different. The modern adaptation of one of the Western world’s quintessential morality plays deals less with specifically Christian concerns and more with the fundamental questions of what it means to be a good person in the 21st century. Penned by Britain’s poet laureate, Carol Ann Duffy, in 2015, the modern take on the 500-year-old tale shifts the focus to a modern framework.
Even so, the crew behind the CU production is hoping to capture at least a bit of the immersive, participatory quality that marked medieval productions across Western Europe. Through innovative stage effects, a participatory set design and the public’s universal access to cellphones and social media, this show will seek to recreate the energy and immediacy of a public square performance.
“We’re using the technology of today to return to a potential interactivity and connectivity that existed in earlier theatrical forms,” said director Will Lewis, a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Colorado. “The idea is to give audience members multiple ways of interacting with the show as opposed to sitting and watching the show.”
That dynamic ties directly to the major themes of the piece. The medieval play saw the titular lead character Everyman facing an existential crisis — to improve his tally of good deeds in God’s ledger book at the moment of his death, Everyman seeks to enlist characters symbolizing fellowship, material goods and knowledge on his pilgrimage to the afterlife. Everyman ultimately learns that he is alone on his journey, and that his own good deeds during life are his only accompaniment.
The modern take strips away the religious connotations of the original, and focuses on the importance of community and spirituality. In an age where self-interest has found means to thrive through technology, these virtues are easy to ignore.
“A major recurring theme is how a contemporary society built on individualism and narcissism connected to technology is causing us to be less and less connected to community,” Lewis said. “That could be construed in many different ways … There’s a very solemn strand in it on what we’ve done to the planet.”
The production seeks to harness technology to impart these messages about its dangers, Lewis said. Live tweeting, streaming and Instagram will be encouraged during parts of the show. The stage has been designed to incorporate and feature audience members, and actors will direct certain dialogue to the house. Selfies will be encouraged at a certain point in the show.
In a way, this approach summons the interactivity of a medieval performance. In another, it harnesses the omnipresent role of tech and interconnectivity to stress the message of Duffy’s adaptation and the original piece.
“I think the interactivity captivates the audience even more … I think it also helps, because the audience is so involved, it’s not as if we’re on a soap box,” said actor and CU theater student Michael Chen, who’s playing the role of Everyman. “The audience is almost on the same level as you … It’s taking advantage of the storytelling and finding ways to captivate younger audiences.”
He added, “I think the theater that we’re going to be doing is a relatively new concept.”
The approach seeks to stress interactivity as opposed to preachiness, and conversation in lieu of sermonizing. Unlike the morality plays of the Middle Ages, this message isn’t an unassailable piece of theology from on high — it’s an opportunity for dialogue and self-reflection.
It’s also an opportunity for some pretty cool effects.
“Part of my concept is not necessarily a critique, but to examine and to highlight what it means to be part of this hyper-driven media culture,” Lewis said. “We’re incorporating the use of digital devices by audience members and cast members during the narrative … There will be a lot of spectacle in the show.”
Even so, the basic structure of the narrative has strong ties to the original piece that circulated around the Western world for hundreds of years. The concept of an individual taking stock of life at the moment of death is powerful, and it makes for a powerful brand of storytelling.
What’s more, the ideas of good deeds and selflessness aren’t the sole property of medieval Christianity. They’re universal moral tenets, features of religions and philosophies across human history.
“The question of what it means to be a good person, what is really and truly important in life, the idea that if you meet someone who needs help, don’t ask them, just do it … many religions, including Christianity, has that basic teaching,” Chen said.
