DEALING WITH DEATH

Damkerng “Big” Thitapiyasak, contemporary Thai theatre’s most prolific director, broke into commercial theatre a couple of months ago with “Rak Ther Samer: The Musical”, entertaining thousands at the Thailand Cultural Centre. Now, he’s back in a small studio — one unit of a shophouse actually — for his next work “Ngao Matchurat” (literally “The Shadow of Death”). His New Theatre Society colleague Parnrat Kritcharnchai translated it from Michael Cristofer’s 1977 Tony- and Pulitzer-winning play “The Shadow Box” and adapted the plot slightly to better fit the Thai context.

“I first knew of this play when I was a young actor - meaning a few decades ago — with Theatre 28 Company. Buranee Ratchaiboon used some monologues from ‘The Shadow Box’ in her acting workshop. I didn’t get to read the whole play back then, but the monologues stuck in my mind,” Big says.

He finished reading the play while studying for his MFA in Theatre Directing in London more than a decade ago and decided then and there to stage in Thailand.

“The play, with three parallel stories of three groups of characters, deals realistically with not only people who are close to death but also those around them.

“Although it’s an American play from the late 1970s, Parnrut and I agree that it’s universal and is more about these characters’ psychological states than their religious beliefs on death. 

It still rings true now and we only needed to make some minor adaptations.”

In the first case, middle-aged Jo is terminally ill. He and his wife Nual have a son. Jo seems to be able to cope with his situation, but Nual is not. 

In the second case, gay university professor Burin seems to have decided to spend the rest of his time writing, while being cared for by his partner Mac. He speaks of death directly yet deep inside is very frightened by it. Then, he’s visited by his ex-wife Ben, causing Mac to reconsider his relationship with Burin. 

In the last case, an old lady is not only nearing her death but also suffering from a mental disorder. Her oldest daughter Poo is taking care of her, and even writes fake letters from the youngest daughter, who has already passed away— an illusion she believes will prolong her mother’s life.

“I was in a similar state myself when my mother was diagnosed with cancer and later passed away,” says Big. “I still vividly recall her last two months when I stayed with her in the hospital — it was one of the most difficult periods in my life. Before one comes to accept death, there are periods of negotiation, denial and frustration, and then there are those around the dying person and how they deal with the situation.” 

The cast includes many veteran actors, among them Sumontha Suanpholrat, Supasawat Buranawej and Priya Wongrabeab in addition to newcomers.

Big says the production set design is kept simple and practical to accommodate the changes from one group of characters to another.

“We use rectangular wooden frames that can be turned to create different scenes. At one rehearsal, someone commented that they looked like those used in the musicals at the Rachadalai Theatre!”

 

 

  YOU CAN’T  ESCAPE DEATH