Rhinoceros was first produced in 1960 in Paris. It was first produced at Illinois State University (then Illinois State Normal University) in 1963. Ionesco died on March 28^th, 1994, exactly sixteen years before I saw the current production staged at I.S.U.'s Westhoff Theatre in Normal, Illinois. It is an old play, as modern plays go. It is said it is an “anti-Nazi” play, and, in a way it most certainly is. After its German opening, a reviewer stated, “Ionesco shows us how we became Nazis.”

With the exception of a few fringe nut cases, the Nazis are gone. So Rhinoceros should be a dated period piece -- like Hair, right? Not quite.

Last Saturday, on CNN, I watched Sarah Palin introduce Senator John McCain before a screaming mob of, basically, Tea Party fanatics. I was suddenly reminded of a recent statement by Irish journalist, Neil O'Dowd who said, “What has happened to Irish American Senator John McCain, the man of principle, who stood up for what was right and to hell with the consequences?

“Those of you who saw him on the Today Show yesterday will know what I mean.

“Host Ann Curry asked him about the violence that is occurring around the country as fanatics target Democratic lawmakers who voted for the health care reform bill.

“McCain's weasel words in reply, effectively saying there was nothing new in such tactics, do not fit the man who is a hero to so many Americans for his ability to speak truth to power.

“The old John McCain would have spoken out directly against the acts that are being committed and would have insisted that everyone calm down.

“But alas, with a tough vote in Arizona on his hands, where he is running against a Tea Party candidate in the primary, McCain it appears had to play the hardball angle every chance he gets.

“What a pity for a man who had so much class that I even helped run a fundraiser for him two years ago because of his support on immigration reform.”

Suddenly it occurred to me that to suggest that Ionesco's play was simple to show the Germans how they “became Nazis” is to sell short a pretty timeless piece of theatre. Here, half a century after it premiered, and sixteen years after the playwright died, it was speaking to us again. It is still as meaningful today in America as it was half a century ago in Europe. Art has a tendency to do that sort of thing, and Rhinoceros is art. It works today. Fearfully, it will probably work tomorrow as well.

And Illinois State, my old undergraduate Alma Mater, where I, as an undergrad, worked on the run gang of the 1963 University Theatre production, has done an outstanding job of reviving this classic of Theatre of the Absurd. For anyone who feels absurdist theatre is no longer relevant, I wish they could see this production. Directed by Master of Fine Arts candidate, James Wagoner, the play is presented in a four-act format, making each scene of Inoesco's original three-act four-scene format an act unto itself. This works well since Westhoff Theatre has been transposed from its original proscenium configuration to its present Jacobean thrust configuration. It gives the run gang sufficient time to make some rather complicated set changes which were flown behind the closed act curtain in 1963. It also seems to make sense artistically, as each scene (now an act) was more than a simple change of place and time. Wagoner's vision of the play is excellent and his direction is seamless. By use of such Twenty-first Century props as cell phones and lap top computers, he has made it clear to his audience that the time of the play is the present, is now. In an attempt to show that it also transcends space as well as time, he states in the programme that it is located “Somewhere in the Chicagoland suburbs,” and makes a couple of references to Chicago personalities. This, I found unnecessary, as the play does not need it. The location, at least of the first act, still seemed more European than Midwestern, a fact that makes no difference at all in the impact of the play. It would be better served to suggest the location to be merely “in the present” and let it go at that.

The first act is composed primarily of exposition and takes place in a sidewalk café. It brings out the silly surface humor of Ionesco's take on the Theatre of the Absurd as the Logician (Brie Hornback) attempts to show the Old Gentleman (Jake Olbert) and anyone willing to listen to her how “logic” is explained through the silliest of syllogisms. Ionesco believed that people's inability to communicate was a major reason for existence becoming absurd, and the dialogue between the Logician and the other inhabitants of the street seem to bear this out.

The second act continues along this line, taking place in an office, and is highlighted by a superb performance by Sabrina Conti as Miss Lange (she was the Housewife in the first act). While the entire cast does an excellent job, I found my attention being drawn to Conti's performance throughout the act.

The third act contains a bravura performance by Jeff Kurysz as “John” (originally Jean in the non-translated French). His transformation into a rhinoceros is spectacular. His acting along with Wagoner's direction allows us to witness a transition from one species to another believably but without any special effects except his acting ability. While he was transformed, I was transfixed.

And then there is the fourth act which presents such a terrible denouement that it kept the highly receptive audience mute. The act showcased the acting talents of Max Ganet (Berenger), Franki Jo Levinson (Daisy) and Nick Dargis (Brennen) and ends amid jack-booted, snorting, stomping Rhinoceroses emerging from every aisle in the audience as Berenger, now the last man standing, declares that he will fight them to the bitter end. This conclusion has all the impact of Kristallnacht or of a brick crashing through the window of a D.N.C. headquarters.

Unfortunately, I.S.U.'s production of Rhinoceros ran for an all-too-short run of only five performances (March 24 through March 28) closing on the sixteenth anniversary of the playwright's death. I am glad I managed to see it, and oh, how I wish every American voter could have as well.