The College of Arts + Architecture Department of Theatre will present the experimental play “4.48 Psychosis” in the Black Box Theater of Robinson Hall from Wednesday, Feb.19, through Thursday, Feb. 27.
The fifth and final drama by British playwright Sarah Kane, “4.48 Psychosis” is a darkly poetic journey through the multiple prisms of psychosis and clinical depression. N.Y. Times theatre critic Ben Brantley has called it “breathtakingly beautiful and ugly.” Kane completed the play shortly before taking her own life, and it was first produced posthumously in 2000.
Kane began her writing life as a poet, and her plays reflect the style and structure of modernist poetry more than conventional theatrical forms. The text of “4.48 Psychosis” indicates no characters or stage directions; the experience of mental breakdown is depicted through the experimental presentation of the text, which likewise demands an experimental presentation on stage.
Director Robin Witt, assistant professor in the Department of Theatre, stated that Kane was one of the most significant playwrights of contemporary times and that the “smashing of realism,” as Kane melds content and form, challenges directors, actors and audiences. Witt conceived of this production in three parts, which will be staged simultaneously in three distinct areas of the Black Box Theater. Audiences will be divided into thirds and will move from section to section to experience “the struggle for sanity and sense in a world of chaos,” said Witt. “It’s going to be a visceral experience.”
There is one matinee performance at 2 p.m., Sunday, Feb. 23. All other performances take place at 7:30 p.m.
Tickets are $14 for general admission, $9 for seniors and UNC Charlotte faculty and staff and $6 for all students and can be purchased by calling 704-687-1849 or online.