Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Standards of Education
Theatre Ideas: "I just returned from a quick trip to Illinois to see my stepson, Jake Olbert, perform in Illinois State University's production of Into the Woods. It was a very strong production, marred only by a small amount of directorial tinkering. After the performance Friday night, the show, which was an Associate entry in the American College Theatre Festival, received a 'response' from an ACTF rep from a school down the road."
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8 comments:
It's so important that theatre students get the proper criticism and feedback while they are still in college. If professors and "outside professionals" just keep giving feedback that is totally impossible, it is impossible to grow as an artist and better yourself. As much as it can suck to get negative feedback at the time, I think that most artists realize that it is the only way that they can get better at their craft. The other problem with only giving positive feedback is that as artists, we are all going to be facing lots and lots of criticism, both negative and positive, when we get into the real world. If you don't here it through your years in college, then there is no way that you are going to be able to deal with it once you are in the real world.
I totally agree with Scott Walters. What is the point of paying for someone to come in and critique your work if they aren't going to give you honest feedback? Great, the artists will feel good about themselves, but no one is paying money and spending their important time to go to university to feel good about themselves, you can do that for free.
I agree with Allegra. Who needs a yes man to watch your performances? We aren't in college to make good theater, we don't do shows to make wonderful performances, college is the place where we learn mistakes. Positive feedback is not helpful. There is no point to have someone come in and give positive feedback.
I'm positive that everyone would reads this article is going to agree with the author. Of course we all want to get an honest answer out of people. We have finally come to understand that we can't grow from hearing "You were perfect" after every performance or job. I just hate to imagine what happened to this college that made them create that disclaimer. The wording was particularly interesting. To actually say "disregard this person as a raging lunatic" is just silly. I would rather run the risk of hurting someone's feelings or just avoiding the situation all together.
I think the worst part of the "disclaimer" cited in the article was the suggestion that if the criticism given goes against what has been said, it should just be dismissed. I don't think any criticism should be totally dismissed. At the same time, the direction of the prodution should not be entirely changed based on the ideas of someone who was not involved in the process. But to think that what they have to say is of no consequence is foolish. As hard as it is to take criticism, it's necessary, and it makes good criticism all the better if it is truly earned. Positive feedback is helpful if it is honest, because feedback should not just be about what's wrong, but sometimes what is right.
Good Reviewers are a great tool. They act as an "objective" audience member that has had no insight into the process and is only seeing and experiencing what the audience is. A truthful opinion can give artists an idea of what the average audience member, although people vary so much it's hard to say what average is, may be going through and how that relates to the story they are trying to tell. Is this the desired effect of the piece? Is there something that wasn't thought of that the reviewer picked up on? I think more and more we are seeing reviews of University productions and even professional shows, that cater to people's feelings as opposed to an actual critical analysis of the production. This kind of feedback helps nobody. Yes you want your students to feel good about their work but what it is really giving them is a false sense of security.
I agree with the others here... without criticism, how does anyone expect to grow? As hard as it can be to hear that what you did wasn't liked, it is so helpful in becoming a better artist. And honestly, if you aren't prepared for criticism, you are in the wrong industry. You are never ever going to do something that everyone approves of and likes. There is always going to be some sort of opposition, whether it be something big or small. The key is to realize which comments are worth changing because of and which you just need to take with a grain of salt.
I read the "disclaimer" that the author included in his article as an explanation of the job of the reviewer, and I actually laughed a little. I think it's ridiculous that a reviewer would have to explain themselves in such a manner. His/her opinion of the show is always going to be an interesting perspective on the effectiveness of the actors' performances, the director's and designer's visions, etc. but that doesn't mean the reviewers opinion is an ultimate authority. It's just really amusing that the reviewer feels like he needs to give such a disclaimer, because it shows that people in the past have probably gotten really defensive and angry after receiving a critical review. Reviewers can give good feedback, but if you don't agree with their very limited view of the production, you don't need to get angry at them for interpreting the production a certain way.
I really don't know how I feel about this. Criticism is something I've had difficulty dealing with since coming to Carnegie Mellon; my generation is constantly criticized for being brought up in an environment where we're praised for our every poo, where we expect to get Bs just for showing up to class. But still, we as a culture place a huge personal assessment on creativity; unlike a technical field, we have difficulty dissociating the artist with the product he or she creates. This is something we not only have to deal with personally but as a society. A lot of us are unable to separate actors with the characters they play; "I love Johnny Depp because he is Jack Sparrow" is a common sentiment among teenage girls. We idolize artists instead of their artwork. So when you attempt to give feedback on a creative work, our culture has merged the work and the person into the same entity. The middle ground is extremely difficult to find; if a person isn't phased by criticism then they're seen as conceited or uncooperative or self-centered. Creativity is difficult.
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