TEHRAN – Da Theater Hall in Tehran is hosting the one-act parody “Nina in the Morning” written by Christopher Durang.

The 45-minute play is directed by Marcell Davood and has Hedie Azade, Hasan Fazli, Eila Tehrani, Sohrab Keivanmarz, and Hedieh Toroghi in the cast.

“Nina in the Morning” is a mysterious, funny play about an extremely wealthy, narcissistic woman named Nina.  Her facelift has fallen this morning, and her plastic surgeon is unreachable, on vacation in Aruba.  She has three children, two of whom keep trying to kill her; the third one is the mentally challenged girl LaLa, whom Nina keeps accusing of being “willfully retarded.”  

While her servant Foote follows her bidding (including giving one of her sons a knockout shot; Foote used to be a dentist), an elegant Narrator describes past events in Nina’s life which she recalls and sometimes relives (many seductions, especially of chauffeurs and house painters).  Finally, one of her children shoots her in the shoulder, and Nina becomes discouraged and considers suicide.  On the other hand, it’s near lunch time.  She’s left debating to herself: “Death… or lunch.  Death…. or lunch.”  

Christopher Durang (1949 –2024) was an American playwright known for works of outrageous and often absurd comedy. His work was especially popular in the 1980s, though his career seemed to get a second wind in the late 1990s.

His work often deals critically with issues of child abuse, Roman Catholic dogma, and culture. Much of Durang's style can be attributed to the aesthetic of black comedy, a humor style that offers a fatalistic view of life.

Durang suggested that his form of humor requires a double-consciousness, an ability to register scenes of cruelty or pain, while simultaneously comprehending the humor.  

Humor is one way of resolving conflict and anxiety, and black comedy goes a step further to relieve tension regarding subjects that are typically difficult to think about, such as death, family dysfunction, or torture.

“Nina in the Morning” will remain on stage till the end of December at the Da Theater Hall, located at No. 5, the first dead-end, Khark Street, Enqelab Street.

SS/SAB