By Yvonne Greenberg and Paul Greenberg
SAN DIEGO–The premise of the San Diego Repertory Theatre’s new play, Weekend With Picasso, is that Pablo Picasso must produce six paintings and three vases over the weekend at his villa in France for a wealthy American client. But what the play really attempts to do is give the audience a better understanding of and insight into Picasso, the great artist and complicated man, by having Picasso, played by Culture Clash’s immensely talented Herb Siguenza in a virtual tour de force, tell stories and teach art through a multi-media presentation that includes painting on stage, singing, drawing, dancing, sculpting, clowning, and impersonating a matador, minotaur, and satyr.
Todd Salovey, now in his 20th season as the REP’s Associate Artistic Director, brings his valuable expertise and guidance to the play as Director.
Everything about Pablo Picasso (born October, 25.1881 in Malaga, Spain and died April 8, 1973 in Mougins, France) is grandiose. One of the best-known figures in 20th century art, his full name consists of almost a dozen names, and his talent was so evident at a very early age that it made his father stop painting and dedicate himself solely to his son’s art. .
As he experimented with different ideas, techniques, and theories, his style changed. His most famous work, the painting Guernica (1937) in the artistic new cubist movement he co-founded, depicts the German bombing of Guernica during the Spanish Civil War.
Interestingly, Picasso became a favorite of American art collectors Leo and Gertrude Stein. Picasso painted portraits of Gertrude Stein and her nephew Allan Stein. Gertrude Stein became Picasso’s principal patron, acquiring his drawings and paintings and exhibiting them at her home in Paris.
He was also well-known for his numerous affairs.
Picasso’s artistic accomplishments brought him fame throughout the world and immense fortunes throughout his life.
In the following interview, director Todd Salovey tells the background of the play. He also provides information on forthcoming projects.
1. How did you get involved in directing the play?
When Herbert Siguenza was in San Diego last year acting in the play Water and Power he asked if he could meet with Sam (Woodhouse, producing and artistic director of San Diego Rep) and I to talk about a project that he was interested in developing. What he brought was a book which was about a photographer who was allowed intimate access to Picasso’s life and his painting and his family. Herb had found this book when he was seven years old and read it and decided he wanted to live a life like Picasso, so needed and so happy and so playful and so childlike, even though he was in his 70’s. And the idea stayed with Herb for many years and Herb described things we didn’t know him, in fact, that he was a visual artist before he was an actor and he said he could paint like Picasso on stage. So we were very excited about the idea of Herb acting as Picasso and painting as Picasso. Herb happens to be one of my favorite character men, I think one of the most talented character actors in the country right now. And so having been excited about developing the piece, of course whenever you start a piece you have no idea what it is going to turn in to. So what we did was schedule three workshops and in each workshop Herb brought more and more of the play and so we could tell that the play was going to be very interesting and very compelling and so I thought it would be a real interesting project to work on. So I think my work is very often either about spiritual ideas but also artistic ideas. I have always been very enamored by the process of creativity and the chance to look at the creative life and the talent and the process of one of the most influential artists of the 20th Century. I thought it would be really exciting to work on.
2. What did you find most challenging and rewarding about directing the play?
The play is written and tries to explore the idea of how can you do a cubist’s portrait of a famous artist. By cubist I mean, looking at the artist from multiple perspectives and because the play is structured trying to look at many different sides of a great artist but a complicated man. The question was, how would presenting all these sides of Picasso work for an audience. And we didn’t find that out until we put it in front of people and saw that people found it was fascinating. What’s interesting is after each performance people come up to me and ask me for a copy of the script because they think a lot of what Picasso is saying is so profound that they want to have it and study it after the show is over.
3. Did you prepare for directing by reading up on Picasso, doing research?
Yes, I read up on Picasso but in particular I studied his paintings. I wanted to figure out what my response to his painting was and so I could present that for the audience. One of the really exciting things we do in this production is show close to 100 paintings of Picasso projected in video or slides during the play. So I think the audience gains an appreciation for Picasso the man and Picasso the artist during the process of seeing the play.
4. How much of the play is fictionalized?
The play is 80% drawn from the actual words of Picasso that were found from books and interviews. So that the structure of the play is that this was a weekend where Picasso would have to paint six paintings and three vases for a wealthy American client is a made-up pretense. And several things that happen in the play are made-up scenes. But most of the play is Picasso’s actual words and I think the audience has an experience of being taught art and told stories by Picasso himself.
5. Have you worked with Herbert Siguenza before?
I have never directed Herbert before but he is part of Culture Clash and I have seen them many times. And I have been trying to interest him as an actor in many of my projects for more than 10 years.
What do you most like about working with Herbert?
Herbert is probably the most creative actor I have ever worked with. Well, one of the two most creative actors I have ever worked with. The other is Jefferson Mays, who won a Tony. But Herb is an actor who, when anything goes wrong, always comes up with a great idea. I think the idea of an actor who can paint like Picasso is a really exciting idea. He is a very exciting talent. This is a life’s dream for him to play this role and he works at it day and night and he has really dedicated all of his talents and skills to making this an exciting play.
6. What in this play could you equate to the Jewish culture?
I think the Jewish idea of this play is that God gives us talents and it is our obligation to commit ourselves to contributing to the world through these talents. And, in Picasso’s case, he was looking at things what he thought were wrong in the world and tried to create art that was not just pretty pictures on the wall, but that would have an impact and would make the world better but make people think differently, feel different, and be more respectful of the marvel of each human being through his art. So I think there is a parallel for the way that we value the sacredness of life and the specialness of people, and our obligation to work hard to develop our God-given talents.
I think the Steins were Jewish and I also think that Picasso’s dealer was Jewish.
7. Your impression of the Guernica.
The thing that’s really interesting about Guernica, which is a central image of the play, in fact the play starts in Paris at the World’s Fair in 1937 with Picasso unveiling Guernica.. It established Picasso as a political artist, but was his response to warfare which had been mechanized to the point that animals, women, and children were all of a sudden part of the battlefield and it was his response to the slaughter of innocents in what he considered to be an unjust war. That painting is the central motif of the play.
The play has just been extended until April 18th. It has been very well-received and we hope that it will have a very healthy life starting in San Diego and then be seen at other theaters in the country afterwards.
8. Do you have any ideas for filming this?
Not really. What we actually think is that not only will it play in theaters but it will play in art venues and art museums and galleries afterwards.
9. Jewish Arts Festival
We’ve chosen the projects this year for the Jewish Arts Festival and one of the really exciting projects we’re doing is a brand new dance theater piece about Marc Chagall that is going to be danced and choreographed by the Malashock Dance Company with original music by Yale Strom.
Todd Salovey has directed many acclaimed REP shows, is on the acting faculty at the University of California, San Diego, the artistic director of the Lipinsky Family Jewish Arts Festival, and also produces many REP surround events.
Herbert Siguenza (Pablo Picasso, Playwright) is a founding member of Culture Clash, the country’s most prominent Chicano/Latino performance dance troupe whose work has been produced by the nation’s leading regional theaters. Among his many works, in 2003 he wrote and starred in Cantinflas!, a tribute to Mexico’s greatest comedic film star who is considered one of the greatest comics of the 20th century. Siguenza has a BFA in printmaking from CCAC. He is currently teaching and directing at UC Irvine and is a mayor-appointed Commissioner for the city of Los Angeles.
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Yvonne Greenberg is a free-lance journalist based in San Diego. Paul Greenberg, who contributed to this article, is a free-lance journalist based in San Diego.