The Lesson

The Lesson, a one-act play by Eugène Ionesco, is a comedic parable of the dangers inherent in indoctrination, performed in 1951 as La Leçon and published in 1953.

In a seemingly lonely old professor’s house, a young pupil comes for her ‘lesson’ as she wants a Doctorate in ‘all the possible streams.’ The professor seems to be her best hope and his encouraging, respectful and demure demeanour, makes her feel all the more confident.

But as the lesson progresses, the professor starts to assert himself more and more strongly and becomes aggressive to the point of murderous towards the pupil, who, over the same course of time, is slowly but surely reduced to a limp, lifeless object, with no control over herself, and a mere putty in the professor’s hands.

The play tackles the overall idea of the menace of totalitarianism with wit, precision and delectable use of language. Through the skewed and one-dimensional relationship of a teacher and student, as giver and taker, the play asks several questions, both personal and political.

Are we awake? Are we aware? Are we free?

Director's Note - 

"When I read the play, I found myself laughing and at the same time, wondering at the absolute madness of the text. There is no doubt that what Ionesco wrote in France more than 60 years ago, is relevant in our country even today. Well, today more than ever. Ionesco’s voice rings out loud and clear throughout this play, mocking the state of affairs of human life and leaving us with much to think about. Its easy to pass this text off as anti-establishment or anti-fascist and anti-so and so, but I think giving it one particular direction reduces the several possibilities that it offers. I wanted to, therefore, stay true to the text and let the audience decide what it means to them. Design-wise, we have taken the liberty to explore and depart from the classical way of performing it."