Q&A: The Bakelite Masterpiece

Kate Cayley. Photo by Cylla von Tiedemann.

Tarragon playwright-in-residence Kate Cayley investigates a world of art, forgery and war crimes in her new play The Bakelite Masterpiece, premiering this month as part of Tarragon Theatre's current season. Set in Holland at the end of World War II, the drama follows the artist van Meegeren after he is arrested for selling a long-lost painting by the Dutch Master Johannes Vermeer to Hermann Goering, Nazi leader. But the truth is, it was a perfect forgery painted by him, and now he must paint another flawless Vermeer to save his life.

Directed by Richard Rose and starring Geordie Johnson and Irene Poole, The Bakelite Masterpiece promises to be an intriguing production. Here, Cayley talks about her experience creating this ambitious piece.

Theatromania: Tell us about The Bakelite Masterpiece. What inspired this play?

KC: Real-life Dutch forger Han Van Meegeren, who was charged with wartime collaboration for selling a priceless, rediscovered Vermeer to Hermann Goering—and then revealed that he'd painted the work himself. That's one inspiration. The subject of the forged painting: "Christ with the Woman Taken in Adultery," the bible story with the famous "let he who is without sin cast the first stone." That's the other inspiration. I've fictionalized what happened very heavily, and woven it together with the bible story to make a play about art, desire, forgiveness and redemption.

Theatromania: How would you describe the production in a few sentences?

KC: Incisive direction, performances that are at once intelligent and deeply felt, beautiful design inspired by Vermeer's paintings, and a thrilling story that presents a rapidly unfolding argument about the nature of art, perception, and atrocity. Okay, that was one sentence.

Theatromania: What have you learned from this experience so far?

KC: Never stop refining or examining what you've written. Trust the process of actors and that they know best how a line feels in their mouths. Trust the director—they know the long game. Embrace that nothing is ever finished. Cut to the bone to find what is essential. Theatre is one of the most direct art forms—trust an audience to follow you if you are being frank and not showing off. Trace the journey of the characters, and have faith in that journey.

Theatromania: What do you hope audiences take away from the performance?

KC: I hope that they shift between the viewpoints of the two characters who battle it out in the course of the play. I hope they are ultimately moved by both. Then I hope they have a really interesting and pleasant argument about art and the nature of collaboration (in both senses) on the way home.

Theatromania: What's next for you?

KC: I have a short story collection, How You Were Born, coming out this fall, and am also working on writing a devised play with Halifax's Zuppa Theatre, loosely inspired by Goethe's poem, "The Erlking." I am in the process of putting together a second collection of poetry. And I have a newborn baby boy (our third child) waiting for me at home. So spending a lot of time with my kids is definitely my next big thing.

Kate Cayley's The Bakelite Masterpiece runs from October 21 to November 30 at Tarragon Theatre. Visit tarragontheatre.com for more information and to buy tickets.