The Clean House
This play is dedicated to the doctors in my life, Tony and Kate
PRODUCTION HISTORY
The first act of The Clean House was commissioned in 2000 by the McCarter Theatre Center in Princeton, NJ.
The world premiere production of
The Clean House, in its full-length form, was produced by Yale Repertory Theatre (James Bundy, Artistic Director; Victoria Nolan, Managing Director) in New Haven, CT, on September 17, 2004. The production was directed by Bill Rauch; the set design was by Christopher Acebo, the lighting design was by Geoff Korf, the costume design was by Shigeru Yaji and the sound design and original music were by André Pluess (for information regarding the music, contact Bret Adams Ltd., Bruce Ostler, 448 West 44th Street, New York, NY 10036); the dramaturg was Rachel Rusch and the production stage manager was James Mountcastle. The cast was as follows:
| LANE | Elizabeth Norment |
| MATILDE | Zilah Mendoza |
| VIRGINIA | Laurie Kennedy |
| A MAN / CHARLES | Tom Bloom |
| A WOMAN / ANA | Carmen de Lavallade and Franca M. Barchiesi |
The Clean House was produced at the Goodman Theatre (Robert Falls, Artistic Director; Roche Schulfer, Executive Director) in Chicago on May 9, 2006. The production was directed by Jessica Thebus; the set design was by Todd Rosenthal, the lighting design was by James F. Ingalls, the costume design was by Linda Roethke and the sound design and original music were by André Pluess and Ben Sussman; the choreographer was Maria Lampert, the dramaturg was Tanya Palmer, the production stage manager was Joseph Drummond and the stage manager was T. Paul Lynch. The cast was as follows:
| LANE | Mary Beth Fisher |
| MATILDE | Guenia Lemos |
| VIRGINIA | Christine Estabrook |
| CHARLES | Patrick Clear |
| ANA | Marilyn Dodds Frank |
The Clean House will receive a production at Lincoln Center Theater (André Bishop, Artistic Director; Bernard Gersten, Executive Producer) in New York City on October 5, 2006. The production will be directed by Bill Rauch; with set design by Christopher Acebo, lighting design by James F. Ingalls, costume design by Shigeru Yaji and sound design and original music by André Pluess. The cast will include:
| LANE | Blair Brown |
| MATILDE | Vanessa Aspillaga |
| VIRGINIA | Jill Clayburgh |
| CHARLES | John Dossett |
| ANA | Concetta Tomei |
CHARACTERS
LANE: A doctor, a woman in her early fifties. She wears white.
MATILDE: Lane’s cleaning lady, a woman in her late twenties. She wears black. She is Brazilian. She has a refined sense of deadpan.
VIRGINIA: Lane’s sister, a woman in her late fifties.
CHARLES: Lane’s husband, a man in his fifties. A compassionate surgeon. He is childlike underneath his white coat. In Act 1, Charles plays Matilde’s father.
ANA: An Argentinean woman. She is impossibly charismatic. In Act 1, she plays Matilde’s mother. She is older than Lane.
Note: Everyone in this play should be able to tell a really good joke.
PLACE
A metaphysical Connecticut. Or, a house that is not far from the sea and not far from the city.
SET
A white living room.
White couch, white vase, white lamp, white rug.
A balcony.
Note: The living room needn’t be full of living room detail, though it should feel human.The space should transform and surprise.The balcony should feel high but also intimate—a close-up shot.
A NOTE ON PRONUNCIATION
“Matilde” is pronounced by the Americans in the play as “Matilda.” It is pronounced by Ana as “Mathilda” at first, until Ana realizes that Matilde is Brazilian. And it is pronounced by Matilde, and the more observant characters in the play, as “Ma-chil-gee,” which is the correct Brazilian pronunciation.
Note: See the end of the play for notes on subtitles and jokes.
A NOTE ON DOUBLE CASTING
It is important that Ana and Charles play Matilde’s mother and father in Act 1. How much can they create, without speaking, a sense of memory and longing, through silence, gesture and dance? Ana’s transformation at the very end of the play should create a full circle for Matilde, from the dead to the living and back again.
