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Picasso At The Lapin Agile: Play Analysis

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For those of us who are theatre connoisseurs, the hilarious mind of Steve Martin writing a play is a dream come true. Martin’s career is a roller coaster ride, changing from dramatic to comic effortlessly. Picasso at the Lapin Agile provides the audience with subtle as well as obvious comedy, factually structured storylines, and a glimpse into the mind of a true theatrical professional. Inspired by his love of art, Picasso at the Lapin Agile is a farcical masterpiece, written by one of the greatest comedians of all time; Steve Martin.
To better understand a play, it is important to better understand the playwright. This American actor, screenwriter, comedian, producer and musician, is a comedic genius, and has had one of the most successful …show more content…

The whole show is performed in a bar in France, called The Lapin Agile located in the Montmartre district; a district known for being an artsy, and social, as well as a risqué environment (LAPIN AGILE). The Lapin Agile itself was a place people from all types of artistic or unique backgrounds would come and show their art (Jones). Martin obviously chose this location for the play because Picasso is the title character of the show, and it would be logical for him to be in an artsy part of Paris. Tying the setting into the reason for the play, rather than setting a play any old place, places Martin far above most other writers. 1904 was the beginning of an age where innovation in art was the norm. Picasso was exiting his Blue Period and entering into the Rose Period of his art. (Pablo Picasso’s Rose Period). Martin purposely picked this time period in order to create a multitude of clever jokes hidden within the text as commentaries on the period. For instance, Picasso is talking about a vision of his art and “leaving blue behind”, after which he orders a Rose to drink. This is yet another example of the wondrous mind Martin possesses, to make such an intelligent joke so subtly takes an advanced comedic mind. Martin’s use of the environment to aid in the telling of the story, adds a deeper layer of comedy that only a man as gifted as he could every

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