Metamorphosis, reviewed by Sara Rosenberg

Kafka's Metamorphosis in a theatrical adaptation by
Vesturport and Lyric Hammersmith Theatres, presented by
Arts Emerson at the Paramount Theatre

A light shines from backstage, illuminating a bed that has been mounted on the wall of the two-story stage.  Beneath the sheets a figure is crouched in an insect-like position, and the audience is immediately intrigued.  The figure beneath the sheets responds to the family’s shouts, and the viewer determines that whoever—or whatever—was illuminated moments ago is Gregor Samsa (Gísli Örn Gardarsson), the son of Herman Samsa (Ingvar E. Sigurdsson) and Lucy Samsa (Edda Arnljótsdóttir).  When Gregor emerges from the bed through a slit in the sheets, it appears that he is an ordinary man; he is dressed for work in a suit, and all that appears to be the matter is that he is running late for work.  However, it becomes immediately evident that something about Gregor is not right when attempts to speak to his family members, who cover their ears in pain whenever Gregor opens his mouth.  Gisli Örn Gardarsson and David Farr’s adaptation of Franz Kafka’s Metamorphosis is miraculously effective in conveying the terrifying transformation that Gregor undergoes.  The set is meticulously designed to allow the viewer to gain a sense of the situation at hand, without outright stating that Gregor has been transformed into a cockroach.  The lower floor of the house is normal, with a table and chairs, and a set of stairs that lead to the upper floor.  However, the mystery and confusion lies within the walls of Gregor’s room.  Everything is mounted on the wall as if the viewer had a bird’s-eye view of the room; the bed, lamp, and chair are all mounted on the far wall, and Gregor climbs about, treating the wall as if it were the floor.  The confusion occurs when Gregor’s family members enter the room; they stand erect as Gregor climbs about, leading the viewer to question whether they have a bird’s-eye view of the room, or if Gregor is actually living on the wall as a bug would.

The terror that the family members show toward Gregor, combined with the confusing setup of Gregor’s room effectively convey the theme of dehumanization.  In Kafka’s story, Gregor is obviously no longer a human—rather, he is a cockroach—but the adaptation Gardarsson and Farr have taken of the story allows for the viewer to become truly disgusted by the way the rest of the Samsa family treats him, especially his sister Greta (Selma Björnsdóttir).  At the beginning of the production Greta is Gregor’s ally, bringing him food and convincing their parents to allow Gregor to come down for dinner; she tries to unite the family despite Gregor’s horrifying appearance.  As the play continues, Greta begins to neglect Gregor; she forgets to feed him and treats him less and less like her brother, taking away the “human” elements of his bedroom such as his bed, chair, and lamp.  Greta refers to the empty room as his “natural habitat,” when in fact Gregor did not want any of the items taken away in the first place.  Gregor’s thoughts and feelings remain the same as they were when he was a human, but because his outer self is no longer the same the Samsa family believes that his mind has changed, as well.  Through taking away the human elements of the room, the play effectively conveys the dehumanization that the Samsa family associates with Gregor’s transformation.

By making Greta the key player in displaying Gregor’s supposed dehumanization, and through making set decisions such as the bird’s eye view in Gregor’s room and, even further, by taking away the traditionally human elements of Gregor’s bedroom, Gisli Örn Gardarsson and David Farr were very successful in making it clear to the audience that dehumanization—even if it is literal—is most prominent in the mental state of those around an individual, rather than the individual themselves.