Take a 17th century proto-feminist nun, a professor enamored with body language, and a stage that is a larger-than-life piece of paper, and what you get is a House of Desires.
Although this baroque comedy was written in 1683 by the Mexican nun Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz, its central theme of desire still resonates in today's hedonistic society.
"Desire is non-generational, it's just innately human," said Rafael López-Barrantes, the director of the play and a senior lecturing fellow in theater studies said.
House of Desires, a Department of Theater Studies production, contains enough convoluted plotting and scheming to make Shakespeare proud. It is the interwoven story of four individuals, each pursuing his or her own desire and the comedy of errors that ensues.
Lovers doña Leonor and don Carlos fight through the obstacles set up by the spoiled doña Ana, who wants to win over don Carlos, and her ruffian brother don Pedro, who wants to marry doña Leonor.
However, the comedy and entertainment lies in the other characters. With skillful exploration of vocal range, strong character development and consistent execution, the secondary characters such as the maid Celia, don Carlos' sidekick Castaño and, most of all, doña Leonor's father serve as great comedic relief and are all around engaging performances.
The action between all of the characters, as created by Sor Juana, unfolds on a paper set covered in writing. The set is symbolic of her creative mind.
While ingenious, this distracting and visually cluttered background is a constant reminder to the viewers that what they are seeing is someone else's words temporarily borrowing a form of life. Therefore, it breaks the theatrical illusion of reality.
The artistic reincarnation of Sor Juana as a watchful but removed character in the play adds to this disillusionment. Performed by sophomore Gretchen Wright, the character serves as the director, set manager and prompter throughout the play. So when you hear her call for the lights to change or to cue a character on stage, it is an intentional-albeit jarring-aspect of the play.
Sure, the central theme of desire has been exploited to the fullest on any given daytime soap opera, but with characters literally popping out of the page, superb peripheral performances and the incorporation of Sor Juana as a character in the play itself, López-Barrantes has succeeded in giving this old theme an entertainingly self-conscious spin.
"This play is a confluent expression of many different wants," said cast member Martin Zimmerman, a senior, "which is something the average Duke student can easily relate to."
House of Desire will play in Reynolds Theater in the Bryan Center Oct. 19-21, and 27-28 at 8:00 p.m. and October 29 at 2:00 p.m. Tickets are $10, $7 for students.
Get The Chronicle straight to your inbox
Signup for our weekly newsletter. Cancel at any time.