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TIME: Almanac 1990
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1990 Time Magazine Compact Almanac, The (1991)(Time).iso
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041789
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04178900.064
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1990-09-17
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THEATER, Page 71Demonic BargainBy William A. Henry III
TEMPTATION
by Vaclav Havel
When New York City's Public Theater produced his The Memorandum
in 1968, Vaclav Havel sat in the audience. But by the time his The
Increased Difficulty of Concentration was mounted the following
year, the Soviets had marched into his native Czechoslovakia, and
Havel was no longer able to travel. His works have been banned from
Czech stages. For his human-rights activism, he has repeatedly been
jailed. This week, when the Public opened his Temptation, Havel was
serving an eight-month sentence for "incitement" and "a public
order misdemeanor" during a peaceful demonstration in January
protesting the legacy of the Soviet invasion.
Temptation is the fourth of Havel's plays to be staged at the
Public; a fifth, Slum Clearance, is scheduled later this year.
Unfortunately, the Public's loyalty does not always result in
illuminating productions. Temptation retells the Faust legend and
evolves into a grimly believable portrait of life in a police
state. This scientist who dabbles in black magic reaps only petty
pleasures, while his demonic bargain leads him to mistrust friends,
denounce colleagues, deny his beliefs and pledge to become a spy.
Director Jiri Zizka, a Czech emigre, adds a mysterious high-tech
gloss but stints on emotion. So do most of the cast, especially the
bloodless David Strathairn in the lead. Still, beneath the
expressionistic spectacle is an intimate, heartfelt and
understandably angry play.