In Nikolai Gogol’s 1835 short story “Diary of a Madman,” a low-level Russian civil servant descends into madness.
Now on stage in the Black Box Theater, a Bates adaptation of the story puts a contemporary twist on the strikingly familiar tale.
The play, adapted by Senior Lecturer in Theater Katalin Vecsey, is set in the present day — Siri replaces a servant and the main character blogs instead of journals — and the set features video walls that display the inner workings of Everyman’s mind as he loses his grip on reality.
But the story that this high-tech production helps tell — one of isolation, unrealized ambitions, unrequited love, and mental illness — is timeless.
Nate Stephenson ’18 of Ellsworth, Maine, plays Everyman as part of his honors thesis in theater. Professor of Music Bill Matthews composed original music for the play.
In the play, the Everyman is in awe of his boss, mistrusts interns and coworkers, and is in love with the boss' daughter. The outside examiner for Stephenson's thesis will be Dassia Posner '94, a Northwestern professor and expert in Russian theater. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/Bates College)
Diary of a Madman will be performed in the Black Box Theater from Nov. 9 to Nov. 13. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/Bates College)
With his work, personal life, and love interest going nowhere, the Everyman comes to believe he is the King of Spain. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/Bates College).
The Everyman ends up being committed, believing he is watched over by the Grand Inquisitor of Spain. Last summer, Stephenson received a Phillips Student Fellowship to study theater in Moscow. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/Bates College)
As part of the short story's translation to the stage and the modern world — a carriage becomes a limousine, a housekeeper becomes Siri, the main character blogs instead of journals — the set includes walls of monitors that display the Everyman's mind. The monitors and software were funded by Bates' Information & Library Services and designed by Senior Lecturer in Theater Michael Reidy. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/Bates College)
