the zeeater played 'a slight ache'
"Damn, there he is. _there he is by the garden fence"
on saturday evening, september 7, 2024, 'het zeeater' from scheveningen performed the one-act play 'a pain' (a slight ache) by the british playwright harold pinter
'a slight ache' is one of pinter's early works, from the time when his plays were mostly set in a secluded space and his main characters invariably faced a threat from outside. _so too in this 1958 one-act play, initially presented as a radio play
"It is a sunny day, the longest day of the year. Flora has gotten up early to work in the garden, while Edward is at work in his study. Nothing seems to stand in the way of a beautiful day for the elderly couple. Or it has to be that wasp, which is targeting the honey pot. Or that pain in Edward's eye. Then a matchmaker appears at the garden fence..." _a strange place to do business, because the path behind the house is a dead end. _flora and edward find the old man fascinating, but are also afraid of him. _but they decide to ask him in. _gradually a game of ever-increasing interrogation, paranoia and seduction ensues, as edward and flora project their fears and desires onto the silent matchmaker. _the resulting picture is not pretty: we see how fear of the unknown can turn into insecurity and urge for control, with dramatic consequences
play | hennie spronk (flora), robert jan peters (edward)
direction | remco lodeweges
production | manon lodeweges