Universalist National Memorial Church
1810 16th Street NW, DC 20009
First produced in 1959, Rhinocéros! presents a small town overrun with radical ideas, clashing ideology and not so subtle transformations. When Beringer, a local drunk, finds himself surrounded by neighbors who are slowly turning into giant beasts, he’s forced to navigate a new world where the rights of citizens are changing as rapidly as the body of the mob around him.
While the original script serves as an allegory for the rise of Facism in mid 20th century Europe, the story presents a familiar tone in public discourse and examines the ways in which a public is quickly radicalized.
Employing large scale puppetry to represent the transformation of people to beast, audiences will be confronted face to face with a cast of life size creatures.