The Insect Play
Ze zivota hmyzu (From the Life of the Insects)
by Karel and Josef Capek
Adapted by Stephen Johnson
Photo and
Design Gallery with Plot Synopsis
Selected Documentation from the 1922 productions in Prague and New York
And from Handmade Performance adaptations in 1992 and 1998
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This site documents two productions by Handmade Performance of The Insect Play, adaptations of the play Ze zivota hmyzu (From the Life of the Insects), by Karel and Josef Capek, a satire of modern life first produced in 1922, in which a Tramp/Narrator observes a range of insects–butterflies, dung beetles, crickets, ants, and so on–whose lifestyle and morality are, sadly, all too human.
The first production, created in 1992 at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, was part of a broad pedagogical exercise that included a full literal translation of the play from the original Czech, an adaptation, extensive research into the original circumstances and context of performance, and set, costume, prop, lighting, makeup, choreography and music all based on that research–not in imitation, but in negotiation with the past. This exercise in extreme production dramaturgy in a university setting was documented in Theatre Topics, 4:2 (September 1994) 189-204 (the article was translated and reprinted in the Czech theatre studies journal, Divadelní revue 4/96). The documents and notes made available here include design and photographic material from this production, and also materials from the first productions of the play in Prague and New York crucial in creating the new adaptation. They may be useful to others as aids to teaching and further production.
The second production, created in 1998 at the Glen Morris Studio Theatre in Toronto, reconsidered all the work of the 1992 production. The script was further adapted, stripped down into a 70-minute, six-performer, movement-oriented exploration of the themes, images and characters of the original productions.
The site takes the visitor through the play chronologically, with comments on script and productions. There are also links for an article published on the 1992 production in Theatre Topics, Credits and Program Notes for the two productions, and a selection from the 1992 script.
The 1992 adaptation was produced at McMaster University for a cast of twenty-two, and has been performed since then a number of times, most notably at Brock University in St Catherines, Ontario (1996, dir. Glenys McQueen-Fuentes), with a cast of eight.
For information on access and rights to the two versions of the script, contact handmade.performance@utoronto.ca