About the work
Eugène Ionesco's drama „Les Chaises" was premiered in Paris in 1952 and is one of the founding works of the absurdist theatre. The one-act play has only two playing characters — both very old — and the imaginary, never-arriving guests for whom they set up an ever-growing army of empty chairs.
Plot
In a tower-like dwelling on an island live the 95-year-old Old Man and his slightly younger wife. The Old Man, a retired caretaker, has decided to deliver a great message to humanity in the evening — the secret of the meaning of his life. He has invited many guests for the lecture and engaged a professional Orator to deliver the message. Throughout the play the guests arrive, invisible to the audience — the Old Man and the Old Woman greet them politely, lead them to chairs, bring them drinks. The stage fills up with chairs — until at the end the Emperor himself is announced, also invisible. As the hall is full, the Orator finally enters — visible. Old Man and Old Woman, in ecstasy, jump out of the windows into the sea. The Orator turns to the audience to deliver the great message — but he is mute and can only utter incoherent sounds. He chalks meaningless letters on a board: „ANGEPAIN, ADIEU". The empty hall remains. End.
Cultural significance
„The Chairs" is, after „The Bald Soprano", Ionesco's most famous work. The play is regarded as the prototype of absurd existential theatre. Famous productions by Jean-Louis Barrault, Theodoros Terzopoulos, Simon McBurney (Théâtre de Complicité 1997 with Geraldine McEwan and Richard Briers) shape the performance tradition. The image of the empty chairs has become a cultural metaphor.