‘Freud’ and ‘Lewis’ converse in latest production
“Freud’s Last Session” is a look at what might have happened if the legendary father of psychotherapy and one of last century’s great Christian writers had spent an afternoon over tea.
To set the stage, Mark St. Germain uses the premise that Freud invites the then little-known C.S. Lewis to his London home. Lewis anticipates the meeting as a confrontation over having criticized Freud in a book. It turns out to be more.
On the occasion of Freud’s death, The New York Times referred to him as one of the “most widely discussed” scientists and credited him with sparking a worldwide discussion of psychoanalysis. Freud was an atheist and wrote widely on philosophy.
Lewis shared Freud’s rejection of God’s existence for the rst half of his life. He later would become a celebrated Oxford don, literary critic and a proponent of faith-based reasoning.
In St. Germain’s script, Lewis is unsure why he’s been invited to Freud’s apartment. Lewis asks, “So why am I here?” Freud responds, “I want to learn why a man of your intellect, one who shared my convictions, could suddenly abandon truth and embrace an insidious lie.”
“What if it isn’t a lie?” replies Lewis.
The two actors for this production are Reece Middleton as Freud and Richard Folmer as Lewis. Middleton is executive director of the Louisiana Association on Compulsive Gambling as well as an accomplished community actor. Folmer is well-known as an actor and director on the local stage and has appeared in numerous movie and television roles.
Both actors are impressed with the ctional meeting St. Germain has created. “I really liked the script,” Middleton said. “I thought that the concept, the idea of a conversation bordering on a therapeutic session between Sigmund Freud and C.S. Lewis, was fascinating.”
“It appeals to me intellectually because it’s such a well-written script,” Folmer noted. “It is a confrontation of two of the major minds of that century, and two very different outlooks.”
Middleton said he thinks the script is faithful to the thought processes of both Freud and Lewis.
“I think Freud mellowed a little bit in his later years,” Middleton said. “I’m not suggesting that he’d moved away from his agnostic/atheistic mindset. I think he became a little more open.”
Folmer summed up saying, “It’s two men getting down and dirty about what they believe and questioning the other with a mutual respect that they don’t want to admit.” He also added, “God comes out pretty good.”
Middleton said he believes that the staged session will broaden the public’s understanding and appreciation of both men. “I have a great admiration for Freud,” he said. “I don’t agree with him. My ideas of counseling are quite different from the psychoanalytic approach.”
For his part, Folmer is reprising a role he rst created in “Shadowlands,” the story of Lewis and his relationship with Joy Davidman, who would become his wife, written by William Nicholson.
“Anything to do with C.S. Lewis interests me because of ‘Shadowlands,’ Folmer admitted. He said he was intrigued by the concept that Lewis could sit down with Freud and discuss their differing beliefs with respect and humor. Lewis, Folmer said, would enjoy that sort of intellectual exploration.
“I think there is always that controversy. Is there a God? How do you prove it? What is faith?” Folmer said. “It’s a searching of both men and what they believe in and why.”
The production will be staged by the Emmett Hook Center, although in a different location. The show will be held in the parlor of First United Methodist Church’s Couch Chapel adjacent to the theater building. The performances are set for 7:30 p.m. May 17 and 18 and 3 p.m. May 19. Tickets are $10. Reservations can be made by calling the box of ce at 429-6885 or going online to www.emmetthookcenter.org.
The show runs about an hour, and there are plans to hold a discussion with the cast and other special guests after the performances. It will be presented as a staged reading, a performance in which actors read from a script as they perform.
Middleton said, “I think we can do real justice in a staged reading. Richard is very good at directing this sort of thing. We’re not going to read the play, we’re going to do the play, but we will have scripts.”
Joe Todaro may be reached at [email protected].
