SJ Rep Presents FREUD'S LAST SESSION, 10/11-11/4
By: Kelsey Denette
Freud's Last Session by Mark St. Germain will be taking the stage at San Jose Rep next month. The thought-provoking, one-act play presents an imagined debate between two colossal, charismatic thinkers of the modern age: legendary psychoanalyst, Sigmund Freud, and young professor and author, C.S. Lewis. Directed by Stephen Wrentmore, Freud's Last Session is a co-production with the Arizona Theatre Company.
Playwright St. Germain was inspired by Dr. Armand M Nicholi Jr.'s book, "The Question of God," in which Nicholi speculates on the possibility and implications of a meeting between the two intellectuals. St. Germain tackles the question with an award-winning production, pacing the exploration of issues over 90 fast-pace, uninterrupted minutes.The play takes place the day before England enters World War II, and just two weeks before Freud, dying of oral cancer, will choose to end his life. Freud has inviTed Lewis to his home in London. desperately wanting to understand how Lewis, who used to share his atheism, has become a recent convert to Christianity, while Lewis believes that Freud wants to confront him about his satirical sketch of Freud in a recent piece of writing. Freud and Lewis clash over the issues of love, sex, the existence of God, and the meaning of life, with humor, intelligence and, in the end, compassion. This astute comedy takes a strong, even-handed look at one of life's most thought-provoking discussions. Bloomberg News calls it,"Delightful! A brainy fencing match of Olympic caliber".Freud's Last Session will run from October 11 through November 4, with Press Opening Night at 7:30 pm, Wednesday, October 17.Videos