'Art' (play)
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''Art'' is a French-language
play Play most commonly refers to: * Play (activity), an activity done for enjoyment * Play (theatre), a work of drama Play may refer also to: Computers and technology * Google Play, a digital content service * Play Framework, a Java framework * P ...
by Yasmina Reza that premiered in 1994 at Comédie des Champs-Élysées in
Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
. The play subsequently ran in London in 1996 and on Broadway in 1998.


Overview

The comedy, which raises questions about art and friendship, concerns three long-time friends, Serge, Marc, and Yvan. Serge, indulging his penchant for modern art, buys a large, expensive, completely white painting, with some slightly-less white lines. Marc is horrified that Serge would waste such money on this, and their relationship suffers considerable strain as a result of their differing opinions about what constitutes "art". Their troubled friend, Yvan, finds himself caught in the middle of the conflict. He attempts to please and mollify both of them, but this only serves to make things worse. The play is not divided into acts and scenes in the traditional manner, but it does nevertheless fall into sections (numbered 1–17 by Pigeat). Some of these are dialogues between two characters, several are
monologue In theatre, a monologue (also known as monolog in North American English) (in , from μόνος ''mónos'', "alone, solitary" and λόγος ''lógos'', "speech") is a speech presented by a single character, most often to express their thoughts ...
s where one of the characters addresses the audience directly, and one is a conversation among all three. At the beginning and end of the play, and for most of the scenes set in Serge's flat, the large white painting is on prominent display.


Plot

Set in Paris, the play revolves around three friends—Serge, Marc and Yvan—who find their previously solid 15-year friendship on shaky ground when Serge buys an expensive painting. The canvas is white, with several fine white lines. Marc, appalled to hear that Serge had paid two hundred thousand francs, scornfully describes it as "a piece of white shit". Serge argues that the painting, created by a reputable artist, is worth its hefty price, but Marc remains unconvinced. Serge and Marc confide in Yvan about their disagreement. Yvan, who is engaged but conflicted over his forthcoming wedding, remains neutral and attempts to smooth things over. To Serge, Yvan comments politely on the painting but admits that he does not grasp the essence of it. To Marc, Yvan laughs at the painting's price but suggests that the work is not quite meaningless. Yvan's vacillations only fuel the disagreement as his friends criticize his timid neutrality. Several nights later the three meet for dinner, and an all-out argument rapidly develops with each using the painting as an excuse to criticise the others over perceived failures. Marc attacks Yvan for never expressing any substantial opinions, and for being an "arse-licker" in the ongoing conflict between his fiancée, his in-laws, and his mother. Marc and Serge argue that Yvan should call off the marriage, to which Yvan responds with lame excuses. Serge criticizes Marc's unwillingness to accept that his friends’ opinions differ from his own; and he reveals that he has for some time despised Marc's girlfriend. Marc finally admits that his true resentment is not the painting itself but the uncharacteristic independence of thought that the purchase reveals in Serge. He recalls that Serge used to share his own views on arts and culture, and he feels abandoned now that Serge has developed his own, modern taste. Marc says that friends must always influence each other, but Serge finds that view to be possessive and controlling. Yvan, at last defending himself, sobbingly explains that he tries to be tolerant and agreeable because he values companionship over dominance: their friendship is his only sanctuary in his burdensome life. After Yvan's outburst, the friends calm down. The argument wordlessly settles as Serge allows Marc to deface the painting using a blue felt-tip pen. Marc draws a person skiing along one of the white lines on the painting. Serge and Marc agree to attempt to rebuild their friendship, and they begin by washing the pen marks off the painting. Marc asks Serge whether he had known that the ink was washable; Serge replies that he had not. But he had indeed known that, and feels troubled about his lie. Marc concludes by describing his own interpretation of the painting: it is of a man who moves across the canvas and disappears.


Productions

The play premiered on 28 October 1994 at the Comédie des Champs-Élysées in
Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
. Directed by Patrice Kerbrat, it starred Pierre Vaneck, Fabrice Luchini and Pierre Arditi. From 1997-98, Vaneck was joined by
Jean-Louis Trintignant Jean-Louis Xavier Trintignant (; 11 December 1930 – 17 June 2022) was a French actor. He made his theatrical debut in 1951, and went on to be regarded as one of the best French dramatic actors of the post-World War II, war era. He starred in m ...
and Jean Rochefort. The
English-language English is a West Germanic language that developed in early medieval England and has since become a English as a lingua franca, global lingua franca. The namesake of the language is the Angles (tribe), Angles, one of the Germanic peoples th ...
adaptation, translated by Christopher Hampton and directed by Matthew Warchus, opened in
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
's West End on 15 October 1996 at Wyndham's Theatre (moving to the Whitehall Theatre in October 2001). The play initially starred Albert Finney, Tom Courtenay and Ken Stott; other actors who appeared during the run included Henry Goodman, Roger Allam, Stacey Keach, George Wendt, David Dukes, Paul Freeman, Edward Woodward, Peter Egan, Art Malik, John Fortune, Ken Campbell, Warren Mitchell, Nigel Havers, Roger Lloyd-Pack and Barry Foster. Produced by David Pugh and Dafydd Rogers and
Sean Connery Sir Thomas Sean Connery (25 August 1930 – 31 October 2020) was a Scottish actor. He was the first actor to Portrayal of James Bond in film, portray the fictional British secret agent James Bond (literary character), James Bond in motion pic ...
, the show ran for over six years, closing on 3 January 2003. The final West End cast comprised Reece Shearsmith,
Steve Pemberton Steven James Pemberton (born 1 September 1967) is a British actor, comedian, director and writer. He was a writer and actor for BBC's ''The League of Gentlemen'' with Reece Shearsmith, Mark Gatiss and Jeremy Dyson. Pemberton and Shearsmith also ...
and
Mark Gatiss Mark Gatiss (; born 17 October 1966) is an English actor, comedian, screenwriter, director, producer and novelist. Best known for his acting work on stage and screen as well as for co-creating television shows with Steven Moffat, he has received ...
(aka The League of Gentlemen). ''Art'' played on Broadway at New York City's Royale Theatre from 12 February 1998 to 8 August 1999, again directed by Warchus and produced by Pugh and Rogers and Connery, plus Joan Cullman. The original cast featured Alan Alda, Victor Garber and Alfred Molina; the latter was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play. ''Art'' won the Tony for Best Play and ran for 600 performances. Among the actors who took over in the production were Brian Cox, Henry Goodman, David Haig,
Buck Henry Buck Henry (born Henry Zuckerman; December 9, 1930 – January 8, 2020) was an American actor, screenwriter, and director. Henry's contributions to film included his work as a co-writer for Mike Nichols's ''The Graduate'' (1967) for which he re ...
, Judd Hirsch, John DeLancie, Joe Morton, Wayne Knight, George Segal and George Wendt. From December 2016 to February 2017, the play, directed once again by Matthew Warchus, was revived at London's
Old Vic Old or OLD may refer to: Places *Old, Baranya, Hungary *Old, Northamptonshire, England *Old Street station, a railway and tube station in London (station code OLD) *OLD, IATA code for Old Town Municipal Airport and Seaplane Base, Old Town, Mai ...
theatre in order to celebrate its 20th anniversary, starring
Rufus Sewell Rufus Frederik Sewell (; born 29 October 1967) is a British actor. In film, he has appeared in ''Carrington (film), Carrington'' (1995), ''Hamlet (1996 film), Hamlet'' (1996), ''Dangerous Beauty'' (1998), ''Dark City (1998 film), Dark City'' (1 ...
,
Tim Key Timothy Key (born 2 September 1976) is an English poet, comedian, actor and screenwriter. He has performed at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, both as a solo act and as part of the comedy group Cowards (comedy troupe), Cowards, and plays Alan Pa ...
and Paul Ritter. It then toured the UK from February 2018, starring Nigel Havers, Denis Lawson and
Stephen Tompkinson Stephen Phillip Tompkinson (born 15 October 1965) is an English actor, known for his television roles as Marcus in '' Chancer '' (1990), Damien Day in '' Drop the Dead Donkey'' (1990–1998), Father Peter Clifford in '' Ballykissangel'' (1996†...
. In May 2024, Rialto Productions staged the play as part of the Brighton Fringe Festival, receiving a 'Must See' rating. In October 2024, a production directed by Iqbal Khan toured the UK starring Aden Gillett, Chris Harper and Seann Walsh. A Broadway revival is scheduled to run at the Music Box Theatre from August to December 2025. Bobby Cannavale, James Corden and Neil Patrick Harris will star with Scott Ellis directing.


Awards and nominations


Awards

* April 1995 Molière Award for Best Commercial Production * 1997 Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Comedy * May 1998 New York Drama Critics' Circle – Best Play * 1998
Tony Award for Best Play The Tony Award for Best Play (formally, an Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre) is an annual award given to the best new (non-musical) play on Broadway, as determined by Tony Award voters. There was no award in the Tonys' first year ...
* 1998 Drama Desk Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play (Molina) * November 1998 ''Evening Standard'' Award for Best Comedy


Nominations

* 1997 Olivier Award for Best Actor, Ken Stott * 1997 Olivier Award for Best Director (Warchus) * 1997 Olivier Award Best for Set Designer (Mark Thompson) * 1997 Olivier Award for Best Lighting Designer (Hugh Vanstone) * 1998
Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ce ...
Best Actor in Play (Molina) * 1998 Tony Award Best Direction of a Play (Warchus) * 1998
Drama Desk Award The Drama Desk Awards are among the most esteemed honors in New York theater, recognizing outstanding achievements across Broadway, Off-Broadway, and Off-Off-Broadway productions within the same categories. The awards are considered a signific ...
for Outstanding New Play


References


Further reading

* *


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Art 1994 plays West End plays Broadway plays French plays New York Drama Critics' Circle Award winners Laurence Olivier Award–winning plays Tony Award–winning plays