Ruskin Group Theatre presents Picasso at the Lapin Agile. Written by Steve Martin. Directed by Amelia Mulkey. Produced by John Ruskin and Michael R. Myers.
Despite the torrential rain, Picasso at the Lapin Agile opened on Friday at the Ruskin Group Theatre to a full house. Steve Martin‘s story is set in 1904 at the Parisian cabaret Lapin Agile, a famous spot for some of the most influential people at the time. Two of the frequent patrons were Pablo Picasso (Isaac J. Cruz) and Albert Einstein (Ryan Stiffelman). The play revolves around the processes the artist and the scientist used to generate their brilliant ideas.
In 1904 a young Einstein was already writing a book about special relativity, a subject not quite well understood, even by scientists. During that period, Picasso was also a regular at the Lapin Agile and he was about to produce Les Demoiselles d’Avignon, a controversial masterpiece of Cubism that de-idealized the Renaissance’s tradition of the human figure. Both of them were broke and not very well known yet, but they were on the verge of transforming the fields of art and science in an extraordinary manner.
Both young men were working on trying to explain space and time like no one else had done it before. Einstein’s theory of relativity unified space and time as one entity. Picasso’s Cubism presented subjects from different perspectives at once, giving the illusion of a broken glass and achieving to project the subjects in a wider context. In that extraordinary effort, Einstein and Picasso developed similar processes to explain the same concept. They sketched images in their heads to visualize different sources of information to put them together and render their respective theories, making the world around people less static and more kinetic.
Picasso at the Lapin Agile is a fascinating look at the time when these two geniuses would meet to exchange ideas, oftentimes perplexing their audiences with their observations, and in the case of Picasso, with his womanizing tendencies. In the play, Picasso is seen with two of his lovers, Suzanne (Ashley Barrett) and Germaine (Amy Motta, Farragut North), who is also the girlfriend of the bartender, Freddy (J. Teddy Garces). The other characters are Gaston (Fred Deni), a French gentleman, Sagot (Jack Merrill), Picasso’s art dealer, Charles Dabernow Schmendiman (Hudson Long), an inventor, and a visitor from the future (Jackson Glenn), an Elvis Presley with fancy shoes.
The scene observing the starry sky is a clever reference to Einstein’s concept of cosmology. The lighting effects (Edward Salas, Lighting and Sound Design) were an excellent touch to this production. The set and costumes (Ryan Wilson, Scenic Design, Michael Mullen, Costume Design) were also phenomenal visual elements, rich in details to represent the Parisian atmosphere of the period.
Picasso at the Lapin Agile is an appreciation of the value and the contributions of art and science in our society. Amelia Mulkey‘s direction captures the essence of the dialogue and the space: The desire of a new generation to break from the past and explore new possibilities based on revolutionary ideas. The staging transports the audience to a bustling place where colorful characters debated about life, love, and the hopes of a better future.
Picasso at the Lapin Agile
Written by: Steve Martin. Directed by: Amelia Mulkey. Produced by: John Ruskin and Michael R. Myers. Presented by: Ruskin Group Theatre. Starring: Ashley Barrett, Isaac J. Cruz, Fred Deni, J. Teddy Garces, Jackson Glenn, Hudson Long, Jack Merrill, Amy Motta, and Ryan Stiffelman.
Ruskin Group Theatre
3000 Airport Avenue
Santa Monica, CA 90405
(Ample free parking)
Opening: 8pm on Friday, February 24 with reception to follow
Schedule: 8pm Fridays and Saturdays, 2pm on Sundays
Closing: April 2, 2023
Creative Team: Ryan Wilson (Scenic Design), Edward Salas (Lighting and Sound Design), Michael Mullen (Costume Design), Paul Ruddy (Casting), Nicole Millar (Production Stage Manager).
Tickets: www.ruskingrouptheatre.com
