A 42-member cast presents “Marat/Sade” – a terrifying pageant bursting with color and music – in Taylor Theatre Feb. 18-27.

The infamous Marquis de Sade has been imprisoned in the asylum of Charenton for endangering public morals. As a form of therapy, the hospital’s patients are allowed to take part in plays. De Sade writes and directs a play about the last hours of French revolutionary Jean-Paul Marat, who was murdered in his bathtub, for the entertainment of the asylum’s director and his family.

“The play asks more questions than it answers,” says director Jim Wren. “For the company and the audience, it is an exciting, energizing, disturbing, and extremely challenging piece of theatre.”

Due to the play’s violent and sexually explicit content, it is not appropriate for those younger than 16.

The play’s full title is “The Persecution and Assassination of Jean-Paul Marat as Performed by the Inmates of the Asylum of Charenton Under the Direction of the Marquis de Sade.” It won both the Tony and the New York Critics’ Circle awards for best play in 1966.

Peter Weiss wrote the play in German; Richard Peaslee composed the music; Geoffrey Skelton translated the play into English; and Adrian Mitchell wrote the English verse adaptation.

In the UNCG Theatre production, Dr. Kelly Gordon serves as dramaturg. She is researching French pronunciations, historical references in the play and mental illness during the 19th century. Todd Wiggins designed the scenery; Zan Barnes designed the costumes; and Matthew Fuller designed the lighting.

The play will be performed in Taylor Theatre on Tate Street at 8 p.m. Feb. 18, 19, 25, and 26; 2 p.m. Feb. 20 and 27; and 7 p.m. Feb. 23 and 24. The Feb. 24 performance will be sign interpreted for the hearing impaired. Free parking for all shows is available behind the Weatherspoon Art Museum.

To order tickets by phone, call (336) 334-4849 on weekdays between noon and 5 p.m. Tickets also are available at the University Box Office and one hour before curtain time at Taylor Theatre. Tickets are $12 for adults, $10 for senior citizens, $8 for groups of 10 or more, and $5 for UNCG students.

For more information, visit the Department of Theatre’s web site.