4.48 Psychosis by Sarah Kane

Performing Actress  Catherine Elsen
Director  Sandy Artuso
Scenography / Artistic Design  Anne Lindner
Light Design  Steve Demuth / Nina Schaeffer
Theatre Pedagogue  Laetitia Lang
Assistant Director  Claire Wagener
Production Manager  Jill Christophe

Since the much-discussed success of her first play Blasted in 1995, Sarah Kane’s work has been linked to the “In- Yer-Face” theatrical style – much to the dismay of the author herself. In fact, Kane’s work is far more than mere ‘sound and fury.’ Throughout her work, the unapologetic research of absolutes like love, guilt, and truth are central. 4.48 Psychosis is Sarah Kane’s last play, written while Kane was struggling with severe and recurring depression. It premiered posthumously in 2000 at the Royal Court’s Jerwood Theatre Upstairs in London, one year after the suicide of the author. Solo-performed by Catherine Elsen, visually designed by artist Anne Lindner and directed by Sandy Artuso, the interplay of performance, text, and visuals will be centrepiece of this production. For this, Catherine Elsen, a multidisciplinary actress and performer, will be using her wide range of acting and musical skills to master the impressive text, which is very rhythmic and prone to a poetic rendering. In addition, the scenography and visual concept of the production will help translate the words and performance to the public.

4.48 Psychosis is a powerful and intense exploration of the darkness and the light fighting inside the mind of the protagonist, an intense ride through their mental descent. The virtuosic and precise use of the language, the lyrical potency of this powerful text starkly contrasts with the main theme: the decline of the mental health of the dramatic “I”. But as always in Sarah Kane’s plays, there is hope, and especially through the visual directing and a multifaceted performance, this production will explore the brightness hidden in this text. ‘Remember the light and believe the light’ – this recurring sentence of the play is one of the paradigms directing the visual concept of the play, which is curated by the renowned artist Anne Lindner.

A production by Independent Little Lies - ILL in coproduction with Centre Culturel Kulturfabrik d’Esch-sur-Alzette and Centre Culturel Régional opderschmelz Dudelange.

With the support of Ministère de la Culture, Ville d’Esch-sur-Alzette and Œuvre Nationale de Secours Grande-Duchesse Charlotte.