by Rose Creasman
February 4, 2008

The maids, played by Holly Wilson (left) and Jessica Painter (right), and Madame played by Katie Dupont.  Photo by Rose Creasman

Salomon Theatre began its 2008-2009 season on a dark note last week with The Maids, a play by Jean Genet that blurs the lines between fantasy and reality. The play opened on Jan. 29 and showed through Feb. 2, featuring a cast of only three people and a sobering message about social classes and rebellion against authority.

“It was heavy, and confusing at times,” said senior Douglas Welcome. “The characters switch roles throughout the play, and it’s difficult to tell what is reality and what is just an illusion created by the maids.”

The Maids follows the vicious charades of two discontented French maids who  create the elaborate illusion of murdering their mistress. Junior Jessica Painter and senior Holly Wilson play the two maids who take turns dressing up as Madame (played by junior Katie Dupont) and insulting her when they are alone.

“I really enjoy intense shows [like The Maids],” said director Paul Bassett. “This is a very dark and intellectual play, and it was a huge challenge for the actresses.”
Genet wrote The Maids in 1945, inspired by an infamous 1933 murder in which two maids brutally killed their employers. Bassett chose the play based on its many layers of meaning and interpretation, knowing the immense challenge it would be to his cast.

“The play is shadowy,” said Bassett. “The story isn’t spoon-fed to the audience, like on TV; you have to pay attention to what’s going on.”
Dupont agreed.

“I think Genet offers room for the mind to wander,” she said. “There are many aspects of the play that are meant to be interpreted.”

Rehearsals for The Maids began more than three months ago, overlapping productions of The Caucasian Chalk Circle in November and the series of one-acts in December and stretched into Christmas break. After the spring semester began, the cast rehearsed six days a week for two hours a day.

“Part of the agreement for being cast in the show was staying five days after finals and returning early from break,” said Bassett. “It’s a hard show to put on, and we wanted everything perfect.”

“It’s been such a positive, unique experience working with such a small cast,” said Dupont. “Every day it was just the three of us, and we grew incredibly close. I think closeness was essential to playing characters this intense; we all needed to know that we could just go back to everyday life afterward.”

Though audience reactions have been mostly positive, according to Bassett and Dupont, everyone seems affected by the play’s dark, sinister themes.   

“Usually people stick around to talk and meet the cast after a performance,” said Dupont. “After this play, people just leave. No one wanted to talk.”

Despite the intensity of the message left by The Maids, audience members came away from the production impressed by a thought-provoking performance.

“I think the play could be a commentary on the mental blocks that we face,” said Welcome. “The maids’ ultimate struggle is personified in the illusion they create. What illusions do we have for ourselves?”