On Sunday, Sept. 20, 2026, IGS Department Head Prof. Chandler Rosenberger took 16 students to see the play “Rhinoceros.” From Aug. 14 to Sept. 27, this award-winning play is showing at the American Repertory Theater (A.R.T.) in Cambridge. Originally written by Eugene Ionesco in 1959, this classic absurdist play premiered in Düsseldorf, Germany, in October 1959. Since then, the play has seen many theatrical revivals, the latest located close by in Cambridge, directed by Tony Award winner Diane Paulus. 

This play is about a small town in France that is overcome with “rhinoceritis.” In essence, people are catching “rhinoceristis” like any other common cold and eventually turning into rhinoceroses. Initially, the characters are scared of it, think it is deadly, and have no place in society. Slowly but surely, as more and more people catch this illness, excuses are made and it becomes just another quirk of their town. 

This absurdist comedy starts with Berenger, played by Emmy winner John Turturro, and Jean, played by Emmy and Golden Globe winner Paul Giamatti, having breakfast. During their breakfast, Berenger is being lectured by Jean for his seemingly alcoholic tendencies. As Jean reprimands his old friend, they both suddenly spot a rhinoceros running around the town square. Both completely caught off guard by this sighting, they continue their conversation — that is, until a different rhinoceros runs right by them, this time seen not only by Berenger and Jean, but by Daisy, played by Emmy Award winner Tatiana Maslany. When Daisy and Berenger enter work together in the following scenes, they tell their coworkers about the insane event. However, both are discounted as unreliable storytellers —  Daisy for being a woman, and Berenger for being an alcoholic. The point when “rhinoceritis” becomes the new norm takes place in Daisy and Berenger’s office when one of their colleagues appears as a rhinoceros, with his distressed wife deciding to join him in that life. The first act closes with Berenger’s best friend, Jean, turning into a rhinoceros right in front of Berenger’s face. As this scene unfolds, Jean and Berenger’s friendship unravels — Berenger cannot fathom that his best friend is succumbing to the common enemy. At this point, Berenger is thoroughly frightened of the illness. Seeing it take over someone who was once so staunchly instills a fear into him that he will not be able to stay true to himself. 

As the second act unfolds, the true meaning of this play becomes clear. With Jean out of the picture, it is up to Berenger and Daisy to stay strong in the face of conformity. Due to the era and location Ionesco wrote this play in, we can link this “common enemy” to fascism. The same questions that run through Berenger's head run through those dealing with dictatorships and Nazism and even our current political state. Where people were once scared of fascism, now it seems that the more you don’t believe in it, the more “outside” you become. Throughout the second act of the play, Berenger grapples with the beauty of “rhinoceritis,” and struggles to see the point in staying true to himself when everyone else has surrendered, viewing the illness as inevitable. This rings shockingly true throughout history, where people wonder what the point of staying on the opposing side is when it feels like you are fighting a losing battle. 

Despite how close Berenger comes to giving in once his last remaining friend, Dudard, the logical one, and Daisy, his love, both leave him for the illness, Berenger delivers a monologue refusing to stand down, pledging to persevere in the face of great evil. As he is delivering this, the rhinoceroses filling the stage's background come closer to Berenger, eventually swallowing him in their darkness, as the play ends in a blackout. While we are renewed with hope through Berenger's words, the directors work to bring the rhinoceroses into the foreground, highlighting what everyone is really scared of — being swallowed by evil, or fighting for a cause when it amounts to nothing.