Presented by Blacklight Production

At: Smock Alley Theatre, Dublin

Date: March 2020

Written by Sarah Daniels

Directed by Cliodna McAllister

Production Design by Alessia Licata

Costume Design by Orla Hurley

Light Design by Ingmar Kviele and Matt McGowan

Sound Design by Eoin Malin

Producer: Colm Doran

In 1983 a premier of Masterpiece, a play written by Sara Daniels, received the mocking commentary from a crowd of mostly man critics.

The world wasn't ready to talk about "locker room talk", sexism, consent, rape and misogynistic action. Today Masterpiece gets its revival.

The 2020 version of Masterpiece by Blacklight Production talk about women, about their minds and their bodies, their fantasies and their fears.

But also talk about how they are desired, sometimes sickly and morbidly, sometimes voraciously, and when there is consent, obviously, in the most enjoyable way.

We wanted our scenography to accompany all the stories intertwined in Masterpiece, without taking a side, without defining a position, because it is a controversial topic we brought on stage.

The idea was to enwrap the space in a dark fairytale atmosphere, the fairytale too often presented to young women as the achievement of happiness and set of romantic and eternal love, and contaminate this with a touch of edgy reality.

On one side, the illusion of one love where tradition means role definition; on the other side, space for those who enjoy strength, passion, and desire with freedom and sane curiosity.

We build the contrast on stage using a platform with sinuous curves and a chair - a throne-like - inlaid with red ropes, inspired by the art of Shibari or the art of tight binding.

Shibari is an old japanise tradition of restraining captive, used by samurai as a code of honour to detain prisoners and yet maintain some respect for their status.

Shibari is also one of the components of BDSM practices.

I strongly wanted to include the aesthetic of Shibari in the design of Masterpiece, because I believe that Shibari lives the same contrast we expressed in the play: the mystified shared vision -"morally correct"- of Shibari like "kinky stuff", relegate to pornography, submission and domination, against the less considered beauty of a visually strong tradition, a symbol also of respect, trust and connection between two people.

The palette was composed of light colours: tones of an off white combined with natural elements and accents of red; a light space to enhance the contrast with the darkness in which the human mind can bring us, lift the atmosphere and predispose the audience for more profound cogitation.

Masterpiece was a multimedia production; the show included interviews with politicians, sex workers, researchers, and the public on exploitation and consent topics.

Part of the proceeds of the show was donated to Dublin Rape Crisis Centre.