At the local community centre, drama teacher Marty organises a theatre workshop. Only three people enrol: Schultz, a divorced carpenter; Lauren, a self-conscious high school student and Theresa, a former actress. To make the group a bit larger, James, Marty’s husband, also takes part in the workshop.

Throughout the seemingly innocuous drama exercises and role-playing, everyone exposes themselves more and more. The characters get emotionally involved with each other, with all the tension that this entails. The theatre classes start to look more and more like a kind of drama therapy.

Circle Mirror Transformation is typical Tristero material: the text is cleverly constructed, plays with theatre codes, is funny and poignant. The characters are complex and delightfully recognisable in their small-humanity.

This text by Annie Baker (°1981) premiered in New York in 2009 and received the Obie Award for Best New American Play in 2010. The play now has its Dutch-language premiere.