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Amédée and his wife Madeleine try to dispose of a growing corpse hidden in their apartment, where it causes mushrooms to sprout and draws the neighbors’ suspicion; when Amédée drags it away, he becomes entangled with it and floats off.
King Bérenger I learns that he and his crumbling kingdom are dying. As his first wife and the Doctor force him to face his death while his second wife tries to shield him, the characters disappear one by one until he accepts the end.
In four periods, Ionesco presents religion as an expression of conformism and the alienation of idealism by the establishment.
A one-act Theatre of the Absurd satire casts Ionesco as a beleaguered playwright besieged by three scholarly critics, Bartholoméus I, II and III, whose dogmatic theories seek to replace artistic truth. The character-author is rescued by his cleaning lady.
In this absurdist play, Jack’s family arranges his marriage to Roberta; when she does not satisfy them, they present Roberta II. Their exchanges spiral through clichés and surreal conceits, including Roberta’s multiple noses.
After generals Macbett and Banco suppress a rebellion, Archduke Duncan reneges on his promised rewards. Spurred by Lady Duncan, Macbett assassinates the Archduke and seizes the throne, then tries to retain power through further violence while haunted by his victims and confronting a new tyrant.
In a small French town, residents begin transforming into rhinoceroses. As colleagues and friends justify or accept the change, Bérenger resists the growing conformity and ultimately remains alone, determined not to capitulate.
Three men endlessly exchange greetings after one asks how the others are, each answering with a different adverb and returning the question. Spectators onstage comment on their repetitive civilities.
The Smiths and their guests exchange increasingly absurd, disconnected remarks; after the language collapses into nonsense, the play restarts with the Martins repeating the Smiths’ opening.
An elderly couple summon guests to hear the Old Man's message for humanity, but the guests are invisible. As they fill the stage with chairs and address the absent audience, the Old Man and Old Woman leap to their deaths; the Orator arrives but can only make unintelligible sounds and leave a garbled message.
Berenger discovers an ideal radiant city, then learns that a killer drowns people in a pool after luring them with an offer to see a picture of the colonel. After Dany is murdered, Berenger tracks down the killer and tries to dissuade him, eventually concluding that there is no hope.
During an increasingly nonsensical lesson in a French flat, the Professor becomes angry at his Pupil’s perceived ignorance as she grows quiet and ill; he eventually stabs her, and the Maid greets a new Pupil, repeating the cycle.
A new tenant directs two movers as they bring furniture into his room without end. The accumulating furniture becomes an overwhelming stage image, while the caretaker speaks with the tenant.
A painter tries to sell a picture to a shrewd businessman, whose sister later dominates him; after he shoots her, she and the neighbor transform, and the painter returns as Prince Charming.
In their flat, Choubert and Madeleine are questioned by a detective about the spelling of a former tenant’s name. The interrogation drives Choubert into a confused search of his memory; Nicolas d’Eu challenges the detective’s logic and kills him, after which the group urges Choubert to keep eating bread to fill the gaps in his memory.
Amédée and his wife Madeleine try to dispose of a growing corpse hidden in their apartment, where it causes mushrooms to sprout and draws the neighbors’ suspicion; when Amédée drags it away, he becomes entangled with it and floats off.
King Bérenger I learns that he and his crumbling kingdom are dying. As his first wife and the Doctor force him to face his death while his second wife tries to shield him, the characters disappear one by one until he accepts the end.
In four periods, Ionesco presents religion as an expression of conformism and the alienation of idealism by the establishment.
A one-act Theatre of the Absurd satire casts Ionesco as a beleaguered playwright besieged by three scholarly critics, Bartholoméus I, II and III, whose dogmatic theories seek to replace artistic truth. The character-author is rescued by his cleaning lady.
In this absurdist play, Jack’s family arranges his marriage to Roberta; when she does not satisfy them, they present Roberta II. Their exchanges spiral through clichés and surreal conceits, including Roberta’s multiple noses.
After generals Macbett and Banco suppress a rebellion, Archduke Duncan reneges on his promised rewards. Spurred by Lady Duncan, Macbett assassinates the Archduke and seizes the throne, then tries to retain power through further violence while haunted by his victims and confronting a new tyrant.
In a small French town, residents begin transforming into rhinoceroses. As colleagues and friends justify or accept the change, Bérenger resists the growing conformity and ultimately remains alone, determined not to capitulate.
Three men endlessly exchange greetings after one asks how the others are, each answering with a different adverb and returning the question. Spectators onstage comment on their repetitive civilities.
The Smiths and their guests exchange increasingly absurd, disconnected remarks; after the language collapses into nonsense, the play restarts with the Martins repeating the Smiths’ opening.
An elderly couple summon guests to hear the Old Man's message for humanity, but the guests are invisible. As they fill the stage with chairs and address the absent audience, the Old Man and Old Woman leap to their deaths; the Orator arrives but can only make unintelligible sounds and leave a garbled message.
Berenger discovers an ideal radiant city, then learns that a killer drowns people in a pool after luring them with an offer to see a picture of the colonel. After Dany is murdered, Berenger tracks down the killer and tries to dissuade him, eventually concluding that there is no hope.
During an increasingly nonsensical lesson in a French flat, the Professor becomes angry at his Pupil’s perceived ignorance as she grows quiet and ill; he eventually stabs her, and the Maid greets a new Pupil, repeating the cycle.
A new tenant directs two movers as they bring furniture into his room without end. The accumulating furniture becomes an overwhelming stage image, while the caretaker speaks with the tenant.
A painter tries to sell a picture to a shrewd businessman, whose sister later dominates him; after he shoots her, she and the neighbor transform, and the painter returns as Prince Charming.
In their flat, Choubert and Madeleine are questioned by a detective about the spelling of a former tenant’s name. The interrogation drives Choubert into a confused search of his memory; Nicolas d’Eu challenges the detective’s logic and kills him, after which the group urges Choubert to keep eating bread to fill the gaps in his memory.