Past Productions by mutatis mutandis

The Burrow

by Franz Kafka
adapted by David Whiteley
performed by David Hersh

In the tradition of Kafka's The Metamorphosis, his short story The Burrow presents human foibles with an animal flavour. A house-proud carnivore relates his hopes and fears, living in his elaborate but lonely dwelling. As he describes his angst-ridden existence, we recognize the very human anxiety we too feel when we try to face life's uncertainties alone.

To this existential allegory, Whiteley brings the wit and levity of his previous, more broadly comic translation/adaptations of Ubu Rex and The Misanthrope, while respecting the subtleties of Kafka's dark humour. Hersh, having collaborated with Whiteley on mutatis mutandis successes Ubu Rex and their critically acclaimed The Lesson, adds his strong physical skills as well as an excellent understanding of the nuances of the strangely human psychology of the animal narrator.