Trustus Theatre hopes this play will get its audiences talking – and thinking

Tony Kushner wrote “A Bright Room Called Day” in 1985, about events that occurred in 1932.

And it remains relevant today.

Trustus Theatre is performing the political drama Friday, Jan. 19, through Saturday, Feb. 3.

“A Bright Room Called Day” is certainly a great conversation for our times,” said Chad Henderson, artistic director of Trustus. “It tells the story of a group of friends and artists that find themselves going from thriving to surviving as the Nazi party takes control of Germany right outside the window of their carefree bohemian hangout.

“It asks us to consider how far we’re willing to go to protect others and to stand up for what we know is right.”

In 1932 Germany, the political landscape had begun to shift as the Nazis won control of the parliament for the first time, which ultimately led to Adolf Hitler’s rise to power. On New Year’s Eve that year, Agnes Eggling and her bohemian friends gather in her cozy Berlin apartment to celebrate the new year and wonder how small, seemingly inconsequential, political actions will change their world. At first, they can’t imagine anything will come of these political changes, but they soon realize that the unthinkable is becoming the new normal.

“I would venture to say that most audience members will be familiar with the infamy of Hitler and his actions during World War II, but what this play illustrates for the audience is the period before and shortly after his coming into power in the early 1930s,” says Krista Forster, who plays Agnes. “In the play, each one of the characters wrestles with the political climate of that era, and each responds differently.

“It is not only an interesting look into how Hitler came to power, but at the everyday lives of those living through that period, not only the political, but also the personal ramifications of their actions. It prompts an audience member to wonder … ‘Who would I be in that situation? Who am I now?’ It’s definitely gotten me thinking, which is what, in addition to being entertaining, great theater can do.”

Interrupting the scene played in the Berlin apartment is Zillah Katz, a self-confessed paranoiac and left-wing crusader who scours the media daily from her tiny New York apartment during President Ronald Reagan’s administration in the 1980s, when the play was written. Katz demands that we examine our own political landscape, challenging the audience to face the world’s evils, both large and small.

“I think that the most important message from this play is that no one can stand by and do nothing,” says Erin Wilson, the play’s director. “If you see something, say something.

“I think that it’s true that the people who feel and see that something is happening that hurts or divides people, those that are too afraid to rock the boat, are as culpable as the ones who actively hurt and divide. I believe in radical and active empathy – and sometimes that requires us to be uncomfortable, maybe even scared, but what else are we put on this earth for except to love and care for each other? I think this play is a really clear example of the importance of that idea. History is a great teacher, and I’m hoping that we finally allow ourselves to learn its lessons.”

In some productions of the play, Katz’s character is “updated” to the current time. But playwright Kushner did not want that to happen for this production because he is working on a separate project to reflect today’s political climate.

Wilson – a former member of the Trustus company and the daughter of Trustus co-founder Jim Thigpen, who died in August – is a guest director for this play, part of the theater’s new mission to reach beyond community lines and welcome theater artists from across the state into Columbia. Wilson said her father would have approved of Trustus performing “A Bright Room Called Day.”

“He believed that theater has a commitment to be a voice for change and illumination and conversation – to leave the audience at the end of the performance satisfied with the entertainment and still thinking about the ideas the next day,” Wilson says. “This play allows folks a glimpse into the lives and hearts of people that we think are so different than we are, but are actually way more similar than we ever imagined. I think he’d really dig this play and production.”

Actor Forster agrees that “A Bright Room Called Day” will generate post-show conversations.

“The emotional journey of all of the characters in the play is so compelling and engrossing that I think any audience member, regardless of their political beliefs, will relate to and be touched by the humanity of their joys and struggles during the time period,” said Forster. “It would be an excellent one to come see with a group of friends and have a lively discussion afterward. Erin Wilson is an amazing director, and this is one of the best group of actors I have ever worked with.”

This story was originally published January 18, 2018 at 10:10 AM with the headline "Trustus Theatre hopes this play will get its audiences talking – and thinking."