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Thanks to our era of film adaptation, most everyone knows about C.S. Lewis' celebrated The Chronicles of Narnia, about the adventures of four British children after they pass into another world through a magical closet. Fewer know about Lewis' celebrated work prior to the Chronicles, The Screwtape Letters. An allegory about the nature of temptation, the story is told through letters from senior demon Screwtape to his nephew Wormword, a demon charged with luring the soul of "the patient" on to Satan's path.
Lewis' book is one of the few that attracts fans from opposite corners of the ideological spectrum. Both late novelist David Foster Wallace and Sarah Palin are on record as fans. Max McLean, a professing Christian, believes the book's enduring appeal is simple: It's so well written.
McLean and theater partner Jeff Fiske aren't the first to adapt the book to stage. It's been done before, London in 1961 and Philadelphia in 2000, but McLean's version playing the title role is the first to capture the entire nation's imagination, with more than 300 performances alone at New York's Westside Theatre before touring nationally.
"When we were playing it in New York, I was impressed by how many people said, 'You really should bring this to Salt Lake City,' " McLean said during a phone interview. "I said, 'I hope you're right, because now we're now booked there.' "
What were your immediate impressions after your first time reading the book?
I read it in my 20s. It made an immediate impression on me. It stayed in my consciousness a long time afterwards. It's human nature to contemplate the devil or the demon world. … Everyone believes in the devil a little bit. There's this real sense that the devil is there. What Lewis was able to do was show me was how the devil works in everyday circumstances. At each point, and in every day, you have a choice of doing this or that, and that choice is influenced by spiritual forces imposing those things. What Lewis did was clarify that in such an amazing way.
What could secular people learn from "The Screwtape Letters"?
Lewis plays to a pretty broad field. That's due largely to his own long process of conversion from atheism to full-orbed Christianity. He dabbled in the occult a little, which might have influenced Screwtape a little while he was writing it. He then moved to theism. He moved from there to fully believing that Jesus is the Son of God. Because of that trajectory, he writes from the point of view of people who don't believe. So there are lots of entry points for people to say, 'This could be true.' He's very large-hearted in regard to his own missteps, and that intrigues people. And he can really write. That's what's so extraordinary. I do think Screwtape is one of the great works of literature in the 20th century. It's one of the great examples of reverse psychology in literature.
When did it first occur to you that it had potential as theater?
Theater professor Jeff Fiske first had the idea, and draft, of a stage adaptation. He sent me an email to say how much he appreciated the work, and suggested I'd make a really good "Screwtape." I didn't know if that was a compliment or not.
What scene do you think is most central to the drama?
It's a predator-prey story, with Screwtape as the predator. The dramatic arc follows what's going to happen to the patient, then what happens to Screwtape as the patient's journey unfolds. Most people can rest assured that he'll be back. The first half of the play sets up all his ST technique. Second half shows resistance to them. At one point ST says, 'the safest road to hell is the gradual one. The gentle slope. Soft underfoot without milestone or signposts.' The patient wakes up to it. That magnifies and reinforces what St. Paul said about Satan, "We must not be ignorant of his devices. He masquerades as an angel of light."
What's the most interesting reaction you've gotten from the production?
A lot of theater professionals and critics have almost dismissed anything with a Christian theme as sort of irrelevant. Christians are placed and disposed of forever. The Screwtape Letters challenges that, and it's very satisfying. People judge the book as an unapologetic expression of the Christian faith. We work so hard in the execution of telling it onstage. It's got to work as theater. What I love most is how Screwtape wakes them up to say "Woa, that was really quite impressive."
What was the hardest part about adapting it to the stage?
It's all told in letters of communication from hell to Earth. So finding out how to make that premise come alive in a clever way required the best stage, light and set design. … We created this really interesting pneumatic device that pulsates these communications up to Earth. We had a really incredible design team to make it memorable, so that it sticks in your head. And that's the way it should be.
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'The Screwtape Letters'
When » Jan. 28, 4 and 8 p.m.
Where » Kingsbury Hall, 1395 Presidents Circle, University of Utah campus, Salt Lake City
Info » $29-$59, with limited premium seats for $89. Call 801-581-7100 (or 866-476-8707 for groups of 10 or more) or visit http://www.ScrewtapeonStage.com for more information.