Thirteen years after its premiere, the award winning play Wit is finally hitting Broadway in January of 2012. The reason for its delay on Broadway is still a mystery but Wit’s prior success is for certain. The winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1999 and deemed “Best New Play” by New York Drama Critics’ Circle are just a few of the honors the play has received. Written by first time playwright Margaret Edson, Wit is Edson’s expression of how a woman finds grace for the first time in her life.

Perhaps the subject matter of the play was assumed to be too strong for audiences by cautious critics alike. Admittedly, the focus of the play is on a woman named Vivan Bearing and her battle with stage four ovarian cancer. Some may consider this a depressing and hopeless subject that would only leave them feeling empty after the play is over. Yet, Vivan’s fight against the horrid disease is not meant to be the focus of the play. Instead, Edson’s hope was to convey the message that, “human connection is what life is all about” as the Actor’s Co-op puts it.

By purposely crafting Vivan as a cold, rigid and overly intelligent professor of 17th century poetry, Edson creates a character that is fighting much more than just cancer. Vivan’s unwillingness to open up to people and inclination to hide behind clever words are her attempts to conceal her vulnerability towards others. These harsh tactics have ultimately left Vivan alone in her life with only the comforting words of poetry scholars to keep her company. With both of her parents deceased and no friends, Vivan literally has no one.

The play chronicles Vivan’s process from the beginning, finding out she has ovarian cancer, to her actual death on her hospital bed. Along the way, the audience not only witnesses the atrophy of Vivan’s physical state, but more importantly the complete downfall of the blockade she has had between herself and others her entire life.

The message from Wit runs deep. It is not a play that is easily forgotten because what it conveys is profound. In a video done by the Actor’s Co-op they said, “ultimately we [did] this story to be able to communicate a message to people and touch their hearts. [Through Wit] we can lead people to take their walls down and do it before they are in a point in life like Vivian is. [Because] human connection is what life is all about”

This crucial understanding of a valuable life lesson spoken through the actors of Wit is now finally hitting the Broadway stage. Wit proves that nothing is too harsh or taboo for the Broadway stage. Although it took 13 years, the fact that it will finally have the opportunity to shine on the big stage is a wonderful thing. Having already proved that its message is something all should witness, Wit’s success is sure to be continued on the Broadway arena.

Nicole Younger, Marketing Intern

Why do people see plays?
I think people go to plays and movies to feel but more importantly to connect.  They want to connect with the actors and actresses they see.  People choose to attend plays that spark their interest because they can see a common thread between the play and their lives.  People go to plays and movies to learn.  In plays and movies, mistakes are erasable.  In real life, mistakes are not erasable.  So people learn from the actors, they witness their emotions, their pain, joy, sorrow, excitement, and sadness. Actors in movies and in plays communicate messages that people may or may have not heard before.  They reinforce or challenge beliefs that people hold. Performing arts is the experiment that life can not be. Theatre is the risk taker that shows the consequences or benefits of a certain way of life. Theatre takes the plunge into the deepest depths of life only to come up for air and perform what is has learned for its audience.

What is Wit about?
It’s not about a woman who has stage four ovarian cancer. It’s not about the doctors who attempt to save Vivan Bearing’s life by putting her through different procedures. It’s not about the funny jokes and smart-allick remarks. It’s about grace. It’s about establishing human connection. It’s about learning that you can’t hide behind clever words and intelligence. It’s about breaking down walls and forming real relationships with people. Wit is about the trials and tribulations of a woman who has never learned that it’s okay to let go of her guard until the very end of her life when she has nothing to lose.

How many people in the U.S. have cancer?
In a 2010 report from American Cancer Society, approximately 1,500 people die everyday because of cancer.