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هنر / مرد اتّفاقی
A train compartment. A man and a woman. In a series of dazzling internal monologues, the man, a novelist, muses on his latest work, contemplates the futility of writing and considers his life in terms of his friends, his daughter, her lover, and the workings of Ex-Lax on his digestive system. The woman thinks of her life, her loves and her friendships in the full knowledge that the man she is facing is the novelist she admires and would love to speak to, and whose latest work she has tucked in her handbag. Christopher Hampton's translation of Yasmina Reza's sharp, witty and sexy play explores the 'nostalgia for what might happen'.
119 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1997
4 people are currently reading
193 people want to read
About the author
Yasmina Reza
56books542followersYasmina Reza began work as an actress, appearing in several new plays as well as in plays by Molière and Marivaux. In 1987 she wrote Conversations after a Burial, which won the Molière Award for Best Author. Following this, she translated Kafka's Metamorphosis for Roman Polanski and was nominated for a Molière Award for Best Translation. Her second play, Winter Crossing, won the 1990 Molière for Best Fringe Production, and her next play The Unexpected Man, enjoyed successful productions in England, France, Scandinavia, Germany and New York. In 1995, Art premiered in Paris and went on to win the Molière Award for Best Author. Since then it has been produced world-wide and translated into 20 languages. The London production received the 1996-97 Olivier Award and Evening Standard Award. Screenwriting credits include See You Tomorrow, starring Jeanne Moreau and directed by Didier Martiny. In September 1997, her first novel, Hammerklavier, was published.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 38 reviews
January 2, 2022
3,5 stars /// This was my first read of 2021. I didn't plan it this way. It just happened. It's been a couple of years since I discovered Yasmina Reza and I always wanted to read through her entire body of work, at least through her plays. I let it slide over the past two years but 2021 will be my year of excessively reading Reza. Mark my words.
L'Homme du hasard (= The Unexpected Man) is a fascinating play. I appreciate its concept and exploration of ideas more than its actual execution but overall, I really enjoyed myself.
It is about a man and a woman who sit opposite each other in a train compartment on their way from Paris to Frankfurt. Their names (Martha and Mr. Parsky) aren't all that important and so in the stage directions they are only referred to as "THE MAN" and "THE WOMAN". Throughout most of the play, they also aren't talking to each other. They are simply observing. And thinking.
While it was sometimes very strenuous and repetitive to only read their inner monologues (thoughts upon thoughts) without any dialogue or true interaction between the two (that's why I said that I found the execution a bit lacklustre at times), I have to say that this play had me at the edge of my seat because THE STAKES WERE SO FUCKING HIGH.
The location of this play � the train compartment � was the perfect choice. As we have established, the dramatic tension of the play hinges on the question of whether or not Martha (THE WOMAN) will make a move and make herself known to Mr. Parsky. On the one hand, the train compartment protects the protagonists from outside interruptions. They both sit so closely together that the tension becomes palpable. It's only the two of them. On the other hand, the train compartment also makes clear that time is limited: as the miles drive by, urgency becomes obvious. Martha doesn't have all the time in the world, as soon as the train arrives at Frankfurt, Mr. Parsky will be gone.
As the play unfolds, Yasmina Reza manages to capture the human condition in such a perfect way ... but I'm used to it from her by now. No one does it like her when it comes to capturing tension, human relationships and all these little feelings and thoughts that one would rather hide from the world. One of my favorite parts in this play are Martha's musings about her friend Serge, which, in her head, she adresses to Mr. Parsky as if she was telling him this story. It reveals so much about her. Her own insecurity, and her pain. She recalls Serge's behaviour as the two said goodbye after a meeting:
I will not spoil how this play ends. You have to read it for yourself.
L'Homme du hasard (= The Unexpected Man) is a fascinating play. I appreciate its concept and exploration of ideas more than its actual execution but overall, I really enjoyed myself.
It is about a man and a woman who sit opposite each other in a train compartment on their way from Paris to Frankfurt. Their names (Martha and Mr. Parsky) aren't all that important and so in the stage directions they are only referred to as "THE MAN" and "THE WOMAN". Throughout most of the play, they also aren't talking to each other. They are simply observing. And thinking.
While it was sometimes very strenuous and repetitive to only read their inner monologues (thoughts upon thoughts) without any dialogue or true interaction between the two (that's why I said that I found the execution a bit lacklustre at times), I have to say that this play had me at the edge of my seat because THE STAKES WERE SO FUCKING HIGH.
THE WOMAN: Maybe it's the mistake of my life that I've often remained civilized.As the woman observes the man, she actually recognises him. He's a well known author, Mr. Parksy, whom she has been obsessed with for decades. She has read all of his books. She's a true fanatic. And as fate wills it, she even has one of his books in her bag, but feels to uncomfortable to pull it out and read it in front of him. And, as one can imagine, she is not only nervous but also dying to interact with this man. She wants to talk to him, get to know him, tell him how much his work means to her. As a reader, by constantly being in her head, you truly come to understand her way of thinking and you start rooting for her to finally muster up the courage to talk to the author. I was soooo into it, not gonna lie. Whenever she braced herself to finally open her mouth, only to fall back into the silence ... I could have screamed.
THE MAN: Let's be honest. You've never done anything for anything or anyone. You don't create in a vacuum.The man is sunken deep in thought. He barely notices the woman. Even though he thinks it's weird that they've been on this train ride for so long and she isn't reading anything, just staring into the air. [Oh honey, IF ONLY YOU KNEWWW!!] He's thinking about himself, his next novel (will there be one?), all the foolish critics, the women he's known and been with, his daughter who's getting married (and whose fiancé he loathes). He seems bitter. ["People talk to me about books written thirty years ago! I don't even know what's in them anymore. No kidding, I don't know anymore."] He no longer wants to write. He doesn't see any purpose in his life.
The location of this play � the train compartment � was the perfect choice. As we have established, the dramatic tension of the play hinges on the question of whether or not Martha (THE WOMAN) will make a move and make herself known to Mr. Parsky. On the one hand, the train compartment protects the protagonists from outside interruptions. They both sit so closely together that the tension becomes palpable. It's only the two of them. On the other hand, the train compartment also makes clear that time is limited: as the miles drive by, urgency becomes obvious. Martha doesn't have all the time in the world, as soon as the train arrives at Frankfurt, Mr. Parsky will be gone.
THE WOMAN: I love to travel. When I set foot in Frankfurt, I will be someone else: the person who arrives is always someone else. Besides, that's how we go, one after another, to the end.Therefore, the setting of the play plays a substantial role in how the characters act, react and develop throughout. The situational framework is key. The moving train is also a fitting and stark contrast to the immobility of the characters themselves. How does it shift once Martha musters up the courage to take out Parsky's book from her bag? Due to their sitting arrangements, he has to notice it. There is no other way. Martha's hesitations are born out of fear � mainly the fear of disappointment. In her head, she has already made up of how Mr. Parsky should be. She wouldn't be able to sustain a blow if he turned out to behave very differently from her imagination and expectation. But more so, she has also already made up her mind of how she wants to be perceived by him. She wants to present herself in a very planned-out and constructed way.
As the play unfolds, Yasmina Reza manages to capture the human condition in such a perfect way ... but I'm used to it from her by now. No one does it like her when it comes to capturing tension, human relationships and all these little feelings and thoughts that one would rather hide from the world. One of my favorite parts in this play are Martha's musings about her friend Serge, which, in her head, she adresses to Mr. Parsky as if she was telling him this story. It reveals so much about her. Her own insecurity, and her pain. She recalls Serge's behaviour as the two said goodbye after a meeting:
We said goodbye with an impersonal kiss and I saw him, Mr. Parsky, running, running, flying in search of a cab, running madly towards his little family, towards his own, running like a man who has freed himself from a chore ...Her bitterness, her fake aloofness, as if she was above a happy family life ... all of that crumbles in front of our eyes, and later she admits: "I'm afraid, Mr. Parsky, that I miss my friend Serge terribly." It's such a little moment but I found it so perfect.
I will not spoil how this play ends. You have to read it for yourself.
May 29, 2017
Nice little play about two people on a train. Includes interior monologues. Quite funny, though I thought Art was funnier.
April 15, 2019
This is the first work by Yasmina Reza that I have come across. I know she is a controversial playwright. She isn’t controversial in the way Sarah Kane was controversial, people don’t walk out of the theatre frustrated and angry and dismissive while others proclaim her a major talent. Reza is controversial in the sense that some people find her work witty and enchanting, others find it inconsequential. I haven’t as yet decided where I stand. A man and a woman face each other in a train compartment; he is a famous writer, she is a fan and has in her bag a copy of his new book, The Unexpected Man. For most of the short play they do not communicate, they are immersed in their own thoughts which the actors speak: it is a play of parallel monologues. The man thinks about a friend and his new partner, about his daughter and her partner; he ponders about his bitterness; he is adamant that his new book is going to be his last; ponders the response to his books. She thinks of friends, but constantly comes back to the author’s work � her friends feel like characters out of them; she ponders the importance of the author’s work in her life, feels an attachment, feels that she understands the works and the man. He finally notices her and wonders who and what she is. It is only in the last few minutes of the play that they speak and their relationship hints at...what? Possibilities? A passing moment on a train? The narrative is left open. The play finishes where most plays would begin, with a meeting. All this is intriguing, but the question is what does it all add up to? And I’m not totally sure. Glancing at some reviews from the original London production of Christopher Hampton’s translation, it seems many viewers (or, at least, reviewers) thought it didn’t add up to that much, but the play offered the actors two juicy characters and the performers made the most of them, disguising the flimsiness of the play. But, as yet, I am uncertain. It is certainly a small play, its ambitions narrow, but if it succeeds within those ambitions this shouldn’t be a criticism. I will have to read more of Yasmina Reza’s work before I decide if they are charming inconsequentialities or whether they are subtlety understated.
October 10, 2017
اولین نمایشنام ای بود که از یاسمینا رضا خوندم و عجب چیزی بود.
به خصوص داستان اولش
جریان سه تا رفیق قدیمیه و مکالمات اونها.
بسیار ریز و دقیق و به جا بود.
به گروه های دوستی پیشنهادش میدم.
به خصوص داستان اولش
جریان سه تا رفیق قدیمیه و مکالمات اونها.
بسیار ریز و دقیق و به جا بود.
به گروه های دوستی پیشنهادش میدم.
March 29, 2015
Oh, my! What a splendid piece of literature! And that ending! I've been in love with Yazmina since I've watched "Carnage", by Roman Polanski. "Art" was just ok, I guess, but this one, this one, Yazmina...! You got me again. I'm yours!
February 9, 2016
I'm a little in love with this piece. A peek into the minds of two fantastic characters with so much to say (who prefer to leave everything unsaid), and an ending that left me grinning with satisfaction.
December 14, 2024
For those who haven't guessed it yet, I'm reading a collection of plays by Yasmina Reza and logging each of these plays separately is my attempt at maybe, probably, just maybe, hitting the 15 book mark I set out for this year. Why is this so important? I don't know. I get a feeling that Reza's characters won't like me because of this desperation to hit my ŷ target every year.
An Unexpected Man is apt title for this one. Like any person ever, this play is unexpectedly not what you think it's going to be and exactly what you thought it was going to be. The play follows two people: A man who is a writer, worrying about ego-centric writerly things, and a woman who is in love with this writer (or the version of him she believes she knows from his work). In true fan fiction fashion, she is on a train journey from Paris to Frankfurt, with this man's book in her handbag, when she spots him and spends the rest of the play wondering how to approach her idol (l'amour de sa vie, if we must) and not come off as an absolute idiot. Somehow Reza takes this and turns it into a story so mature and absurd at the same time, I'm left speechless (French absurdity might just be the amour de ma vie, stay tuned to find out).
As was the case with 'Art', Reza opts out of all stage direction in The Unexpected Man, in fact even more than she did in 'Art'. While the absence of the stage direction didn't trouble me all that much this time, I am unsure how the story will work on stage. I might even argue that this play works better as a short story. But then again, I know that turning it into a short story would take away the intrigue of wondering at every step how this would play out on stage, and I think Reza wants us to constantly have that screaming at the back of our heads while we read this story. Whoever directs this on stage really has to spend creative thought if they want to do it justice and I can't stop thinking about every interpretation this play could give birth to.
I suppose I must say this: as in any piece of art with one man and one woman, I once again find myself tilting towards the woman and being absolutely glued to the book everytime it shifts to her perspective. I don't know what kind of bias this is. But I couldn't get enough of this woman character. She was so odd, she has some of the craziest stories as dialogues. But they ring so true, so unpretentious. Maybe Reza meant to do this by making the man the most annoying "monologuer" ever, or maybe I'm just not as inclusive as I thought myself to be. Whatever it is, it is what it is, and there's nothing I can (want to) do about it.
An Unexpected Man is apt title for this one. Like any person ever, this play is unexpectedly not what you think it's going to be and exactly what you thought it was going to be. The play follows two people: A man who is a writer, worrying about ego-centric writerly things, and a woman who is in love with this writer (or the version of him she believes she knows from his work). In true fan fiction fashion, she is on a train journey from Paris to Frankfurt, with this man's book in her handbag, when she spots him and spends the rest of the play wondering how to approach her idol (l'amour de sa vie, if we must) and not come off as an absolute idiot. Somehow Reza takes this and turns it into a story so mature and absurd at the same time, I'm left speechless (French absurdity might just be the amour de ma vie, stay tuned to find out).
As was the case with 'Art', Reza opts out of all stage direction in The Unexpected Man, in fact even more than she did in 'Art'. While the absence of the stage direction didn't trouble me all that much this time, I am unsure how the story will work on stage. I might even argue that this play works better as a short story. But then again, I know that turning it into a short story would take away the intrigue of wondering at every step how this would play out on stage, and I think Reza wants us to constantly have that screaming at the back of our heads while we read this story. Whoever directs this on stage really has to spend creative thought if they want to do it justice and I can't stop thinking about every interpretation this play could give birth to.
I suppose I must say this: as in any piece of art with one man and one woman, I once again find myself tilting towards the woman and being absolutely glued to the book everytime it shifts to her perspective. I don't know what kind of bias this is. But I couldn't get enough of this woman character. She was so odd, she has some of the craziest stories as dialogues. But they ring so true, so unpretentious. Maybe Reza meant to do this by making the man the most annoying "monologuer" ever, or maybe I'm just not as inclusive as I thought myself to be. Whatever it is, it is what it is, and there's nothing I can (want to) do about it.
April 29, 2021
I always seem to wind up admiring Reza's plats rather than really enjoying them .. and so it is with this. Partially this is due to the structure (alternating monologues, until the final moments, in which there is interaction between the two characters). But some of the speeches here seem more portentous than in actuality they are - the Man, in particular, is a bit of a blowhard, but I suppose that is intentional. Still, would have loved to have seen this with the original cast(s) of Eileen Atkins and Michael Gambon (London) or Alan Bates (NY).
May 27, 2023
2.5 stars, rounded up
April 14, 2020
An excellent story revealing how people have a myriad of thoughts contrary to what they're willing to reveal to others.
June 10, 2009
Lately, each book I read corresponds, uncannily, to lived experience. This elegant Albin Michel volume is no exception.
This volume contains the international smash hit play "Art" - that's title, including quotation marks. The Broadway cast was so hyped in 1999 that I remember it now:
- Alfred Molina as Yvan. A browbeaten, tender man of peace
- Alan Alda as Marc. Cynical, yet not above experimenting with anti-anxiety meds.
- Victor Garber as Serge. Wealthy, sincere, and the recent buyer of a modern painting: a white canvas with a few diagonal white streaks.
The reviews described "Art" as a three-man show about taste: three friends' motley tastes in art, their impassioned reactions to the all-white painting, their contemplation of value and consumerism, blah blah blah.
In truth, Yasmina Reza doesn't do such middlebrow puddle-jumping. She draws the curtain from male friendships, crafting a triangle of engaging protagonists and a lovely finale.
This volume contains the international smash hit play "Art" - that's title, including quotation marks. The Broadway cast was so hyped in 1999 that I remember it now:
- Alfred Molina as Yvan. A browbeaten, tender man of peace
- Alan Alda as Marc. Cynical, yet not above experimenting with anti-anxiety meds.
- Victor Garber as Serge. Wealthy, sincere, and the recent buyer of a modern painting: a white canvas with a few diagonal white streaks.
The reviews described "Art" as a three-man show about taste: three friends' motley tastes in art, their impassioned reactions to the all-white painting, their contemplation of value and consumerism, blah blah blah.
In truth, Yasmina Reza doesn't do such middlebrow puddle-jumping. She draws the curtain from male friendships, crafting a triangle of engaging protagonists and a lovely finale.
May 21, 2017
An unexpected pleasure in listening to the inner dialogue of two people, who know not each other, on a train, one an author and one a reader who loves that author's works.
The move from insecure inner dialogue to tentative external dialogue that becomes delightfully honest allowing for a possible relationship between the two former strangers.
The move from insecure inner dialogue to tentative external dialogue that becomes delightfully honest allowing for a possible relationship between the two former strangers.
August 31, 2012
I wasn't sure about this one until near the end when I decided I liked it very much. I believe a subsequent reading of ti would most likely result in an added star. But who knows? Not sure I will have the time for that. So much reading and so little time. But Reza certainly is a charm.
January 8, 2014
This could be interpreted as a trite concept but I found it incredibly moving. The nearness of strangers and the serendipity of interactions play to form this piece of successive and related monologues.
November 10, 2016
Two people on a train with their thoughts, no stage directions. This could be boring, but Reza has a sharp pen and good insights into the human mind. Good play, good play.
June 5, 2017
«Պարոն Փարսկի, և ես ոչ այս կյանքում, որպեսզի դուք շատ չհուզվեք, կտրվեի ցանկացած խենթության ձեզ հետ»:
Սիրունագույն պիես. Յասմինա Ռեզա «Պատահականության մարդը»
Սիրունագույն պիես. Յասմինա Ռեզա «Պատահականության մարդը»
January 10, 2025
A play that would be nothing without its subtle revelation toward the end, where the almost-Blanchotian inner monologues are torn apart and the subtext is thrust upon the characters and the reader.
At times, Reza's writing can fall flat on the page. Though her dramatic works are often dialogue-heavy, I see how a director could fill empty spaces and create a visually impactful theatrical event. I envision set pieces moving behind train windows using stark lighting or puppetry, adorning Martha in the butteriest of yellow suits, or filling the train with eighty silent ensemble members.
At times, Reza's writing can fall flat on the page. Though her dramatic works are often dialogue-heavy, I see how a director could fill empty spaces and create a visually impactful theatrical event. I envision set pieces moving behind train windows using stark lighting or puppetry, adorning Martha in the butteriest of yellow suits, or filling the train with eighty silent ensemble members.
December 25, 2024
( Format : Audiobook )
"I was happy with Exlax ... It suited me."
This is a play with two actors, stuck.together in the carriage of a train, one a rebound author, the other a long time fan.. It is their sometimes bizarre internal dialogues thad we hear. Sometimes funny.
Nicely written and beautifully acted by David Duvet and Harriet Walter.
"I was happy with Exlax ... It suited me."
This is a play with two actors, stuck.together in the carriage of a train, one a rebound author, the other a long time fan.. It is their sometimes bizarre internal dialogues thad we hear. Sometimes funny.
Nicely written and beautifully acted by David Duvet and Harriet Walter.
June 16, 2021
A BEAUTIFUL story about human connection, growing up, growing old, and melancholy; beautifully told by Yasmina Reza. A two-person play told through monologues, this play explores the joys, heartaches, doubts, and loneliness of two strangers on a train - The Woman, and her favorite author The Man.
March 6, 2019
Super facinating way of writing a play. I would love to see this performed.
December 13, 2019
It's like a little Thomas Bernhard novel. Works as a read.
October 1, 2021
Can be forgiven for its self-centeredness as it’s a play. Studies in inner monologue
October 7, 2021
Yasmina Reza.... where have you been all my life !
January 12, 2022
DNF. Unpleasant people having unpleasant thoughts. A drag.
January 22, 2023
I've never read a play composed of just internal monologues before. Not entirely sure how it would play out on stage, but it did hold my interest.
April 11, 2023
🌕🌕🌗дд
January 18, 2024
I listened to the version with David Suchet and Harriet Walters. I quite liked it with them.
January 28, 2019
It was okay. But Yasmina Reza can do much better.
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May 6, 2023“Bitter. It’s all so bitter.�
This is a play from the mid-1990s, and you might otherwise know Yasmina Reza from her play “God of Carnage�, which involves two sets of pretentious upper-class parents duking it out after a playground incident of violence. I have also read her play “Art� which tackles some of the more silly questions related to the contemporary art world.
This play only involves two people, passengers on the same train, and is primarily their internal monologues that are dominating their thoughts during the trip. We begin with Parsky, a fiction writer, who is traveling to meet up with his daughter and her much older new fiancé. He is quite upset about the whole ordeal, and among other things is thinking about his writing interplays with this ridiculous situation he finds himself attending.
Martha, on the other hand, is a middle-aged woman, who just so happens to have one of Parsky’s books in her bag, and it’s this very book that has been occupying his thoughts. As she reads the book, he notices, and she notices him noticing, but neither feel compelled for the longest time to bring it up. At one point Parsky even mentions how very much like a certain kind of short story of an earlier age this reminds him of � he reaches the conclusion of Stefan Zweig, but I would say Henry James or Edith Wharton, but regardless, the thought makes him laugh, and of course speaks to an irony in the play.
This is a play from the mid-1990s, and you might otherwise know Yasmina Reza from her play “God of Carnage�, which involves two sets of pretentious upper-class parents duking it out after a playground incident of violence. I have also read her play “Art� which tackles some of the more silly questions related to the contemporary art world.
This play only involves two people, passengers on the same train, and is primarily their internal monologues that are dominating their thoughts during the trip. We begin with Parsky, a fiction writer, who is traveling to meet up with his daughter and her much older new fiancé. He is quite upset about the whole ordeal, and among other things is thinking about his writing interplays with this ridiculous situation he finds himself attending.
Martha, on the other hand, is a middle-aged woman, who just so happens to have one of Parsky’s books in her bag, and it’s this very book that has been occupying his thoughts. As she reads the book, he notices, and she notices him noticing, but neither feel compelled for the longest time to bring it up. At one point Parsky even mentions how very much like a certain kind of short story of an earlier age this reminds him of � he reaches the conclusion of Stefan Zweig, but I would say Henry James or Edith Wharton, but regardless, the thought makes him laugh, and of course speaks to an irony in the play.
December 20, 2014
Ein wunderbares Stück über zwei Menschen, die sich in einem Zugabteil gegenübersitzen. Es geht nicht nur darum, ob und ggf. wie fremde Menschen in Kontakt treten. Beide reflektieren über ihre aktuelle Situation im Leben, über ihr soziales Umfeld. Und dazu geht es auch um das Schreiben und das Lesen von Büchern, was man in den Text bringt und was was daraus entnimmt.
Und David Suchet und Harriet Walter sind großartig. Ich kann mir vorstellen, dass dieses Stück als reine Eigen-Lektüre nicht so kraftvoll ist wie in dieser Audiobuchform. Oder vielleicht als Theaterstück.
Und David Suchet und Harriet Walter sind großartig. Ich kann mir vorstellen, dass dieses Stück als reine Eigen-Lektüre nicht so kraftvoll ist wie in dieser Audiobuchform. Oder vielleicht als Theaterstück.
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