Basement Arts' latest student production, "No Man's Land" by Harold Pinter, may sound like a play with minimal appeal to college students: It's the story of an old man who is about to die. But don't brush this play off. If you have ever had out-of-town friends wear out their welcome when crashing in your dorm room or if you have ever been unsure about your future, you can relate to this play.
"No Man's Land" is the story of Hirst (Rob Sulewski), an old, rich man who invites a guest, Spooner (James Ingagiola), into his house for a drink. Hirst has two servants (Mandy Politziner and Jeff Steiger) that he is completely dependent on, giving them more power over him then he has over them. Spooner is poor and Hirst tries to convert him into being another one of his servants, a plan that goes awry.
Rob Sulewski, who stars as Hirst, has previous experience working on Pinter's dramas. Last January he was involved with a production of "The Pinter Review." Sulewski then came across "No Man's Land" and introduced the play to Basement Arts. Though not Pinter's most frequently performed piece, the theme of finality, with appropriately hilarious moments, stuck out to Sulewski.
Sulewski also has been credited as director of "No Man's Land," which is only a quarter correct. The four members of the cast have been sharing the responsibility of advising each other.
"This is a different type of experimental theater; no director," Sulewski explained. Instead, the four actors have been equally critiquing each other, creating a group direction of the piece. "It's like the audience is always there, even in rehearsal," Sulewski said. "The input we are getting from one another is helpful. We are getting specific comments."
Sulewski has found being a director as well as an actor in the play a welcomed challenge. Usually seated in the director's chair, he finds it a nice break to get up on stage. However, the dual role brings more pressure. "To a certain extent, a director can hide during a performance," Sulewski said. On center stage, however, there's no place to hide. Sulewski has found it difficult to be in a scene and then be able to separate himself enough from it to step back and critique it, but he says the experience has been rewarding and has had a positive impact on the cast and the production.
With the experimentation in this play being its method of self-directing, the cast has chosen to keep the production as true to Pinter as possible. There is no cutting of lines or stage directions. "We're trusting Pinter implicitly," said Sulewski with a smile, his respect for the playwright apparent.
The cast is also exploring the themes Pinter laid out as much as possible. Sulewski explained that the play has overtones of "finality and finishedness." He feels the play addresses issues we will all face, if we don't already face them now.
"This play gets to the point of existence, but then there's more then that," Sulewski said. The play is not plot-heavy or too serious. He promises moments of hilarity and quite an ending.
"(The ending) is really quite a piece of gold. I don't want to give it away," Sulewski said. He explained that the audience will have a good time because it will enjoy what is being portrayed. He hopes the audience will walk away thinking about its own situation and its own purpose. "The play doesn't give answers, but better articulated questions," Sulewski said.
At some point, everyone wonders what they are going to do with themselves, and then they move on. The interesting twist in "No Man's Land" is that Hirst has done it all, he is an old man, possibly dying, who has reached the end of his life. But he still has the last part of his life to live out. "No Man's Land" asks what should be done when there's really nothing left to do.