Then Silence
About the show
The Scandinavian American Theater Company presents the US premiere of a Norwegian play comprised of 10 stories that examine humanity's struggles with power, domination, loss, mortality, and ultimately, survival. More…
'Then Silence' holds up a mirror to human behavior and asks us to watch and, hopefully, learn. During its 10 tales, we see behind the terrible lies in a break-up, the torture in an interrogation room, a battle for life and death, and other intense situations.
"'Then Silence' is a display of what happens when comedy becomes desperate in the face of inevitable death...Every moment is tightly wound in this vault...Ambivalence is entirely due to the 'bad' acting of the play’s leads, all of whom absorb and reflect all the necessary moods and tones...Lygre’s mixture of comedic styles and intelligent critique (of our self-perceptions and political ideals), for all its concision, does occasionally tumble into peculiar and off-putting mannerisms." Full Review
"'Then Silence' is an ambitious effort. The driving force of the action rests on the idea-heavy scenes and an underlying lament for the selfish plight of humans...The moments that come across the most clearly are mainly to the credit of Seidel, who has a grounded, naturalistic delivery that is enjoyable to watch...Regrettably, the play ended with many unanswered questions left open for interpretation. But perhaps that is the point of the piece." Full Review
"'Then Silence,' more than anything, left me confused. It seemed like some of the common sense got lost in translation...The direction of Sarah Cameron Sunde lacked clarity...The actors seemed a bit lost themselves...Ultimately the show felt lackluster and didn’t come together as it could have. I felt lost and unenthusiastic, but that doesn’t mean you won’t find something of yourself reflected in this performance." Full Review
"It’s possible that Lygre's interminable, pretentious dystopian fantasia is more profound in Norwegian...Initially there is a modest sense of interest in attempting to discern the events and characters depicted, but that soon evaporates and is replaced by numbness...Ms. Sunde has taken this problematic material and nobly realized it with theatrical flashiness...They have given this minor, insubstantial and unsatisfying work a fine production." Full Review
"The author means for his play to represent a fragmented world, and this it does. The performers, Morten Holst, Kwasi Osei and Christiane Julie Seidel are heroic. Just memorizing this mass of inchoate material is a feat...While ideally, the reach should always exceed the grasp, this pretentious exercise taxes the audience mercilessly. It’s the longest 90 minutes this reviewer has ever spent in the theater. The 'Silence' couldn’t come soon enough." Full Review
See it if you like interesting new work with an avatgarde twist.
Don't see it if you only like classics or kitchen sink realism...
See it if you like to see anything different, you do not mind disjointed scenes which go nowhere or can sit through anything reasonably well acted.
Don't see it if you like to see quality work with interesting storilines which take you on a journey.
See it if You are related to someone in the cast or crew, you need a clean, air-conditioned place to hang out, you are Scandanavian? Super confusing.
Don't see it if You need a plot, a consistent theme or even a consistent mood from scene to scene...all over the place. Uneven performances. Overwrought.
Cast & Creatives (10)
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