Purgatory as Explored in Live Theatre Spaces

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.33043/DLR.13.1.141-152

Keywords:

thirdspace, liminal space, in-between space, purgatory, heaven, hell, theatre, live theatre, Musical, stage play, spatiality, space

Abstract

This article discusses how the idea of Purgatory is explored in three stage plays: Jean-Paul Sartre’s No Exit, Peter Tarsi’s one-act play, Tracks, and contemporary musical, Ride the Cyclone. All three plays take place in a version of Purgatory that shows characters interacting with both space and the other people in the space. Reading the plays in connection with Edward Soja’s theory of Thirdspace and Stanley Vincent Longman’s “The Spatial Dimension of Theatre,” the author examines how the liminal Thirdspace of live theatre helps audiences grapple with the concept of Purgatory.

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References

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“General Council of Trent: Twenty-Fifth Session-Papal Encyclicals.” Papal Encyclicals Online, 31 Jan 2024. www.papalencyclicals.net councils/trent/twenty-fifth-session.htm.

Longman, Stanley Vincent. “The Spatial Dimension of Theatre.” Theatre Journal, vol. 33, no. 1, 1981, pp. 46–59. JSTOR, doi. org/10.2307/3207487. Accessed 22 Nov. 2025.

Mambrol, Nasrullah. “Analysis of Jean-Paul Sartre’s No Exit.” Literary Theory and Criticism, 7 Aug. 2020, literariness.org/2020/08/07/analysis-of-jean-paul-sartres-no-exit/#google_vignette.

Maxwell, Brooke, and Jacob Richmond. “Ride the Cyclone. The Full Musical. HQ.” Uploaded by Alexis Maldonado. YouTube, 31 July 2024, youtu.be/guiLTUucdg8?si=txzomk8x3SA0XD9-.

Richard. “Ride the Cyclone: A Theatrical Roller Coaster of Life, Death, and Everything in Between.” Dreamchaserhub, 11 Dec. 2024, dreamchaserhub.com/ride-the-cyclone/.

Sartre, Jean-Paul. No Exit. Internet Archive, ia800303.us.archive.org/13/items/NoExit/NoExit.pdf. Accessed 25 Jan. 2026.

Soja, Edward W. Thirdspace: Journeys to Los Angeles and Other Real-and-Imagined Places. Malden, MA: Blackwell, 1996. Print.

Tarsi, Peter. Tracks. Dramatic Publishing, www.dramaticpublishing.com/browse/uil/tracks. Accessed 25 Jan. 2026.

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Published

2026-04-10

How to Cite

Patton, A. (2026). Purgatory as Explored in Live Theatre Spaces. Digital Literature Review, 13(1), 141–152. https://doi.org/10.33043/DLR.13.1.141-152