‘Freud’s Last Session’ is a Battle of Wits

The Next Stage will present a unique work at the State Theatre this week. “Freud’s Last Session,” a two-man drama, invites the audience into psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud’s office to witness an imaginary conversation between Freud and writer C.S. Lewis, the Oxford don most known for The Chronicles of Narnia.

The show will open at 8 p.m. on July 19. Performances will be held Saturday at 8 and Sunday at 3 p.m. this weekend and next. An additional 3 p.m. show will be held on Saturday, July 27.

Set in 1939 in London, the play opens with Lewis arriving at Freud’s flat. Air raid sirens and radio broadcasts signify that England has joined the war.

Chris Hults as Lewis and Lloyd Short as Freud proceed to engage in what director Richard Biever calls “a pressure cooker.”  Freud, a devout atheist, calls into question Lewis’ devotion to his conversion to Catholicism, while Lewis wonders how Freud can deny the existence of a deity. The battle of wits between the two intellectual heavyweights highlights some of the most fundamental beliefs humans possess. Hults and Short each bring an intensity to their performances that makes this interpretation particularly electric.

“They’re both onstage for an hour and twenty minutes,” Biever said. “It’s a mountain of work for each of them.”

The two pull it off, though. Hults’ Lewis brings a reserved sensitivity to the role. We see the English gentleman approach the aging Freud with respect, while refusing to let the Austrian intimidate him. Freud, nearing the end of his life, has sought refuge in Britain after Nazis threatened his family. Short portrays the dying physician with strength and defiance. This man won’t go down without a fight.

“Both characters have preconceived ideas about what the other will think and say,” Biever said, “with imaginary arguments and bullet points. It’s unexpected when they start revealing more about who they really are.”

But the script by Mark St. Germain does have its lighter, more humorous moments. Lewis arrives at Freud’s flat a bit late. In response to apologies, Freud said: “If I wasn’t eighty-three, I’d say it doesn’t matter.”

Intriguing props include gas masks, religious figurines and a Victorian chaise lounge. All of these find their way into the conversation, creating an inviting atmosphere at odds with the impending war and the unsettling depths of dialogue.

“It’s an intimate piece, more focused on the writing,” Hults observed.

“Freud’s Last Session” will give audiences a few things to discuss and much to think about.