American playwright William Mastrosimone caused a stir when his play Extremities first hit the stage in 1982. It dared to raise a sensitive topic that was usually hushed and brandished taboo. Although the play’s major themes are more openly discussed today, Claire Kirby, one half of Spark to a Flame Productions, explains why this drama is still as powerful as it was almost three decades ago.
Tell me Claire, why should we go to see this play?
When I read this script, maybe three years ago for the first time, I was just engrossed in it. I did research into it and I was just absolutely enthralled by what the play has to say. For me, it’s a story of a simple girl that’s living in a farmhouse in New Jersey and how one day can change the course of her life. Reading it first, I thought it was about fear and how fear can change your life, but the more and more I read it, I found it’s really about power and how one second of the day you feel like you are powerful and could walk on water, and then one situation or one instance can change the course of your life; how power struggles are changed; and how this girl in the play can change those power struggles back to suit herself and switch everything around again. So she’s sort of stepped up to the plate for me anyway, and said “No, I’m not going to allow someone to change my life and let fear enter my life forever. I’m going to take the control back into my hands.”
Is it specifically about female power?
At first I was like, this is a real girl power sort of play. And yes, I definitely think there are themes of that in there. You know, when you first read it it’s a play about attempted rape and things like that but that’s what I wanted to veer away from, and when it’s highlighted and because it’s promoted, I really don’t want to talk about the idea of her being raped. I want to talk about the idea of how this unfortunate situation has happened to her but she is not allowing it to control her life. She has taken a stance and is going to fight back; she is not going to allow this situation change how she sees the world.
It seems very dark, are there lighter elements to this drama as well?
Very much so. The first scene is where it all happens and unfolds and as her two housemates enter the play there are such witty and light-hearted elements to it that really bring out some great humour. It’s this sort of cat and mouse act between all four characters and how they change their perceptions on things and change their perceptions on her; how she views her housemates and views her attacker throughout the course of the play. There’s some really witty comments and light-heartedness spread throughout.
The play was very controversial back in the 80s when it first opened on Broadway. Why was that? And is it as controversial today?
You know, I always feel that the idea of rape is still taboo. It was taboo probably a bit more back then, but I believe that the idea of sexual assault is going to be taboo twenty years from now. I don’t think that’s ever going to change. I do believe that people are more inclined to talk about these things today than they did in the 80s, but to be honest with you, twenty per cent of all women and men in Ireland, that’s one in five people in this country, have been subjected to rape at some point in their lifetime. That’s twenty percent of all our peers in our country. These situations have to be talked about more and I do believe that people are not as close-minded when discussing these issues now.
It wasn’t uncommon to find the two leads in past productions of this play pressing icepacks against their bruises after performances – it’s such a physical piece. How physical is this production of Extremities?
It’s quite physical. When I first talked with my director (Sophie Motley) about producing this play, we wanted the physicality to come forth – not to highlight the assault but to make the audience aware of what this girl had done to regain her control. So there are some physical elements to it, but I think that adds to the production and it’s very well directed.
So have the actors who play Marjorie and Raul suffered any black eyes then?
Not that it’s going to be very evident physically, but they do knock each other over a bit and there’s a little wrestling but nothing where you would think, “Oh my God, what’s going on up there?!” It’s very well directed and choreographed and visually, it looks beautiful.
What do you think the play says about justice and the legal system, does it advocate vigilantism?
I honestly don’t think it does at all. It’s unfortunate that it’s a very small statistic of rapists that are actually prosecuted and put behind bars, and this is a girl who is obviously wrestling with those ideas because if it does go further from that farmhouse that she’s living in, is she going to be a person of fear for the rest of her life? Throughout the whole course of the play it looks into those ideas, and Marjorie who is the lead character, is always wrestling with the question, “Is the justice system going to be there for me in the end?” So does it highlight that the justice system needs to be changed? Definitely. And the more that people and plays like these highlight that, I think that’s for the better.
Obviously the justice system hasn’t changed much in the twenty years or so from when this play first opened…
No, absolutely not. And it needs to. Obviously it’s getting better. I read a statistic the other day that is frightening. Something like 7.8% of all women who have experienced some sort of sexual violence have reported it to the Gardaí, so 90% of all people who have been sexually assaulted have gone unreported to the Gardaí . That’s frightening and the reason behind it is because these people are afraid to bring it forward because they know that nothing is going to be done about it. One of the reasons why I love this play so much is because the writer, William Mastrosimone, was inspired to write this script by a lady who he met randomly on the street who was a rape victim and her case was dismissed because the rapist was a nineteen year old boy. He had entered her home intent on robbing her and he actually sexually assaulted her and the case was dismissed because this guy was dressed up nicely by his lawyers and when put on the stand he made amusing remarks and the jury loved him, thought he was hilarious. No evidence of the rape was found and the case was thrown out. Then this lady moved across to the other side of America because she couldn’t live in fear anymore, and she said to the writer of this play, “There was that moment during the attack, there was one split second where the guy turned away and lit a cigarette,” and she said, “I could have done something in that moment, I could have kicked him, I could have ran, I could have screamed.” But she was so crippled with fear that she did nothing and she will regret that for the rest of her life.
It’s quite chilling really…
Especially for females, you being one as well, I think we feel it a little bit more. But I think across the board, men and women, if they come to see this play they will walk away having seen a great production, but thinking. I love people to come see a production and walk away and have thought about it and said, “Oh my god, I really feel differently about a situation after having seen that”. That’s what I really want.
To end on a lighter note, Marjorie has been played by great actresses like Susan Sarandon, Farah Fawcett and Helen Mirren. Certainly tough acts to follow! How does Katie Kirby fare in the role?
I think she was very well cast by my director. She has the physicality and the acting ability for this character. I think both the characteristics that you need going into this role are the innocence and girly quality that at the beginning of the play offsets this sort of, not attraction but rapport that these two have with each other when the attacker starts to enter her home, and Katie also brings that sense of strength and character to the middle and end of the play when she has to fight back and show her authority. So I think that she was excellently cast and I have no doubt that she will perform beautifully.
Katie Gilroy
