A Eulogy for Vincent

Fort Lee Public Library paid tribute to the upcoming colorful yet dour weather of Autumn with a play centering around the beautifully tragic story of the famous Vincent Van Gogh. The play, a one-person, one-act performance written and directed by Ed Schiff and brought to Fort Lee via his non profit production company, Apples & Oranges, starred talented young actor Brendan Walsh, whose career spans many mediums, including stage productions, television, and commercial spots. Ed Schiff has contributed to over 200 productions as an actor, director and producer. The stage was set up in the library’s meeting room on the lower level. Over one hundred people turned up for the free performance.

“We make a lot of our decisions based on what other libraries have done. This play came ,” said Olga Kuharets, program director for the Fort Lee Library. Kuharets was not surprised, but extremely pleased with the huge turn out for the play, and thankful for the generous donations audience members left after the performance.

The one act, one-man show, “A Eulogy for Vincent,” brings the audience into an assembly hall approximately a week after the death of Vincent Van Gogh. Here, Theo Van Gogh, the artist’s younger brother, delivers a heartfelt speech in which he tries to convince listeners that Vincent was not insane, but rather, talented, beautiful and woefully misunderstood. The play’s dialogue is heavily derived from a series of actual letters between Theo and Vincent; in these words we are brought back in time to learn about the delicate, tumultuous, and dependant relationship between the two brothers.

Brendan Walsh gave a brilliant performance. His energy was absolutely palpable. It filled the dimly lit meeting room and forced the audience to hold their collective breath until he paused between lines. Walsh managed to shift gears between careful, sensitive Theo and manic, passionate Vincent with absolutely no disruption. When Vincent was raving, Walsh’s face reddened, when Theo was mourning, his eyes watered. Every humorous quip from Theo and every agitated exclamation from Vincent brought a response from the audience. They never had to wonder which man was was speaking, despite Walsh playing both men as letters were read to and from both brothers.

Afterward, Schiff and Walsh participated in a Q&A session. When asked if he thought Van Gogh was “certifiably insane,” Walsh eloquently replied: “Insanity is merely an opinion.” Both Schiff and Walsh offered up more interesting facts about the artist, his life, and his medical issues that leant to the idea of his madness and why he seemed so passionate in life. Neither seemed to think Van Gogh was the loonybird many modern day portrayals make him out to be.

”He just wanted to love everyone so much,” Walsh said, with a degree of emotion.

Walsh said his interest in Van Gogh’s work started when he saw “Starry Night” in the new MoMa in Manhattan. He met Ed Schiff several years later, and so the connection was made.

“A Eulogy for Vincent” is especially interesting because it gives the audience a biography of Vincent Van Gogh without the humdrum deliverance of dates and facts. We hear about many of Van Gogh’s life events through the words of family and friends, and from Van Gogh himself. Some of the most interesting facts not many people might know was that he considered himself a Christ figure and suffered from epilepsy.

The Fort Lee Public Library will be hosting a variety of interesting events this upcoming season, including a “Meet the Author” series. “It’s brand new to Fort Lee Library,”

The next Meet the Author series will be an “insider’s view of book publishing” with an appearance by author Jan Kardys on Wednesday, September 14 at 7:00pm.

The next live performance will be a concert by the reknown Carmel Quinn on Sunday, September 18 at 2:00pm.