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The Hermit in New York

Presented by Moreau Center for the Arts at Little Theatre | Saint Mary's College

February 15, 2007

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In the mid-1960’s, world-famous Trappist monk and writer Thomas Merton was allowed by his abbot to leave the monastery for a weekend in order to have tea with Zen scholar D. T. Suzuki in New York City. Here begins The Hermit in New York, a play woven of language and ideas from Merton’s lifelong writings, exploring the daily life of a modern Christian radical, performed by two actors in a minimalist staging. It is this poetic balance between the public and private Merton that has inspired the title of this new play, The Hermit in New York. In his early days at Gethsemani Monastery, Merton struggled with loneliness and the rigors of monastic life. At the urging of his superiors, he began writing about his spiritual experiences. Soon he found his own unique rhythm of writing in solitude; then entering the public realm for interviews, discussions, classes and the like; then again retreating into solitude to write. He found great literary success in 1948 with the publication of his autobiography, The Seven Storey Mountain. A warm, hearty, earthy man, Merton was a testament to the notion that prayer and meditation are not lofty, esoteric ambitions meant for only a few, but that the nature of deep contemplation is an integral part of earthly life. In this play by Chicago based Still Point Theatre Collective, Merton struggles with abbot James Fox for creative control of his art and spiritual practice, talks politics with poor white Kentuckian Andy Boone, romances a beautiful nurse named Melanie, and spends a summer afternoon in the woods with Mrs. Hanayama, a wry survivor of the atomic bomb. The Hermit in New York opens a humorous and challenging window on the world of Thomas Merton - a solitary, a celebrity and an ordinary man.