Prometeo Theatre Produces Sartre’s Existential Classic

Wolfson Campus’ Prometeo Theatre recently brought to life a Jean Paul Sartre masterpiece: A Puerta Cerrada (No exit).

This powerful one-act play, under the masterful direction of Yaraní del Valle and the participation of Prometeo’s Conservatory in Theatre Arts second-year actors, revealed Sartre’s existential philosophy: ”hell is other people.”

In Puerta Cerrada, three unfortunate souls are forced to face eternity with no way out. Modern white scenery without the presence of mirrors was the perfect setting where the characters reflected each other’s darkest secrets leading to a deep emotional battle to face themselves.

During the play, they suffered from their unending torturous condemnation—each other.

“We studied Sartre’s existentialism for almost a year,” said Pablo Guillen, one of the main characters of the play. “It is a long process of auto discovery.”

The cast—Lissette Riera, Claudia Quesada, Luis Martínez, Pablo Guillén, Diego Moreno and Luis Fuentes—represented anti-heroes who struggled on games of guilt and revenge, imitating deep human desires and wickedness.

Sartre, a French philosopher and the father of the existentialist movement of twentieth century, developed a critique of the natural human condition. He criticizes the constant fixation of people’s superficiality and how they base their lives on the approval of others.

“A Puerta Cerrada presents a cruel but real reality. We can create each other’s hell or heaven on earth,” del Valle said. “Exploring Sartre’s piece has been an enlightenment process; we want to share that with the public.”

Simple but effective costumes, lighting and set design created by Carlos Cedano, Jorge Noa and Pedro Balmaseda added a sense of harmony and balance to the play.

Music composed and produced by Dearr Sheldon from the New World School of The Arts and Alvaro Ramirez from MDC, helped make Puerta Cerrada a pleasant experience.

“Prometeo’s plays always have authenticity, professionalism and innovative ideas,” said playgoer Luis Celeiro. “There is nothing better than enjoying a piece of art on scene.”

With a total of four performances, Puerta Cerrada offered to the audience a classic of literature. Incredible new talent, unique scenery and well-constructed dialogue in two languages—English and Spanish—made this play one of a kind.