A stark dialogue between life, loneliness and silence

In 1983, Marsha Norman won the prestigious Pulitzer Prize for her play, Night, Mother. A daughter calmly tells her mother that she plans to end her life that night. The play explores themes of mental health, family relationships, despair, and the inability to communicate.

Now, The Art Factory (TAF) has brought this renowned play to Chennai for the first time. Directed by veteran theatre director Vinod Anand, Aparna Rajhesh and Abhinaya Ravindranathan will take the audience on a unique journey filled with love, despair, and choices. “I first read this play in 1986, but I never had the courage or maturity to attempt it. I’ve neither seen it staged nor watched the movie. I see a young world lost in social media. Friends are virtual, and everyone is a psychologist offering advice for the price of an emoji. I have seen the light in children’s eyes when they listen to a story from a real person. I’ve seen loneliness in their desperate need for validation from likes on social media. I think it’s time someone draws attention to it,” says the director of the play Night, Mother.

He believes that the topic the play deals with is quite sensitive. “It’s a cathartic experience dealing with this subject. Since the entire play is in a single act and in a single scene, it required brilliant actors. Aparna and Abhinaya brought those characters to life,” he adds.

Apart from the Pulitzer, Norman’s play also won the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize, the Hull-Warriner, and the 1986 Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement. Discussing the most challenging part, Vinod shares, “Loneliness is an endemic issue that needs addressing. The biggest challenge was ensuring the characters did not affect the actors. It’s very easy to feel sympathy for the characters as they are close to real life. You will be seeing these people in your everyday life. Yet we wouldn’t think twice about ignoring them.”

Vinod feels that suicide is not usually the first option for people. It’s the last resort. “It’s a single-act play with no set or scene changes for 90 minutes.” On the technical front, Balram is assisting Vinod in direction, Prasanna Rajaram is the production manager, and Charles is handling the lights and sound.

And, what can the Chennai audience expect from an award-winning play? “This play will make people think. It may not solve the problem of loneliness affecting everyone, but it will definitely spark conversation. For us, Night, Mother is not just a performance, but a movement,” Vinod assures.

Along with this performance, TAF is launching its buddy initiative, pledging to dedicate at least 30 minutes of their time to dispel loneliness by engaging with anyone who might need it. Loneliness is probably the biggest silent killer that the world has failed to address.

Immerse yourself in the hauntingly intimate tale of conversations between life and death with Night, Mother, at AF Madras, Nungambakkam, on November 2, at 7.30 pm. Visit the BookMyShow website to reserve your seats.