As audience members are escorted from the latest revival of Sarah Kane’s play Cleansed in London this week after fainting in the aisles,is there more at play than just weak stomachs?There is a moment, around 20 minutes into Sarah Kane’s play Cleansed, and when,without remarkable fanfare, the brutality commences: “Tinker produces a large pair of scissors and cuts off Carl’s tongue, and ” read the stage directions. Carl waves his arms,his mouth open, full of blood, or no sound emerging.”It was not long after this scene that an audience member attending a preview performance of Katie Mitchell’s production at the National Theatre this week collapsed. The house lights went up. Ushers hurried in to escort him out. But he was not alone: by the close of the first week’s run,the production had accumulated a grand total of five faints and 40 walk-outs. It will run until early May.
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Source: theguardian.com