The theatre of deception in job interviews

YouTube, my best friend, has been sensing my boredom with its recommendations. The minute it suggests a historical series, I hesitate, knowing that it would take me months to finish.
Movies are even worse, as I keep thinking of time wasted staring at the screen when I could be doing something useful.
After watching a few Spanish news clips, YouTube started suggesting Spanish series and - surprisingly enough - plays which instantly grabbed my attention after my enchanting experience watching Machiavelli’s The Prince in 2018 in Málaga.
The suggestion was a 2004 play production called ‘The Grönholm Method’ (El método Grönholm) by playwright Jordi Galceran. The play is set in a waiting area of a Swedish company called Dekia with four candidates aspiring to get an executive position.
The candidates are Fernando, Enrique, Carlos and Mercedes. At first, they’re guarded with each other, but as time passes, they discover that they’re locked up in the room and assume that their interactions are monitored by an interview panel.
That’s when a side hatch opens and the first message is delivered: one of the candidates is from the HR department and the rest must figure him/her out in ten minutes. The challenge doesn’t stop there, as more quests come through the hatch, from a role-play to figure out who should survive a plane crash to sharing intimate information that could jeopardise their future position in the company.
Under pressure, each candidate starts reacting differently: Fernando is ruthless, Enrique is defensive, Carlos feels victimised, while Mercedes keeps reminding everyone of the necessity of collaborating as a team and staying calm, even when she doesn’t feel that way at all.
Enrique and Carlos are asked to leave and the remaining two are given the final task of eliminating each other. As Mercedes leaves bitterly, Fernando doesn’t seem happy about winning. A twist at the end regarding the real identities of the other three contestants leaves him baffled. But would he really get the job?
The play lasted an hour and forty minutes and was a pleasure to watch. There were many funny moments due to Enrique’s impulsive reactions and Fernando’s dry humour, yet this didn’t ease the pressure of trying to think objectively under time constraints and among strangers – just like the candidates.
As the play unfolds, the anecdotes they share start reflecting their life experiences and vulnerabilities they try to hide under the mask of professionalism. The play leaves you questioning the ethics behind hiring practices at reputable firms and the limits of human capabilities.
The actors’ performance was impeccable, especially Carlos Hipólito. The director of the play is Tazmin Townsend, an English theatre director who also lectures at the European University of Madrid.
Her work includes Catalan plays and a Spanish musical adaptation of Shakespeare’s 'A Midsummer Night's Dream' (2007). Jordi Galceran is a Spanish playwright, screenwriter and translator who writes in Catalan and Castilian. He won many Spanish theatre awards for his work, including three for ‘The Grönholm Method’ in 2004 and 2005.
The play’s first opening was in Barcelona in 2003, followed by many other shows in South America, Eastern Europe, and Scandinavia.
A Spanish movie by the name ‘The Method’ came out in 2005 that discusses a company’s selection method and the limitations it faces in meeting its objectives. Although many link it to the play, it was not written by Galceran or adapted from his play. ‘The Grönholm Method’ play is available on YouTube with English subtitles and is a refreshing change from movies’ predictability. Compelling and highly recommended.