The number of times I hear that statement when I talk about USITT is amazing.
Representing a group of people, the majority of whom spend their lives trying not to be seen, presents a challenge. Our members "make it look easy" I am told. But when I point out the various jobs that must be done to make an event or show happen, the reaction is always a new understanding of all that our members do.
We see the world differently.
10 comments:
This is a good reminder for all of us who work in the design and technical fields of theatre. We really do see the world differently. I know I have problems watching theatre shows because I start watching the technical aspects of the show and I can tell when a cue is late or things are not operating the way they should. That's just how I see the world. I can't go to Haunted Houses anymore because I end up watching how it all it put together as opposed to losing myself in the world they are created. I see the things I'm supposed to have my attention drawn to but my eyes instead go to where the guy creeping up to scare you is coming from. It makes for a very interesting perspective. David talks about speaking with pride about the art that is created by our colleagues but it's hard to speak with people about it because many people just don't understand it. I've worked at educating my family about what I do, and my mother has a small understanding, my father has acknowledged that I do something in the realm of theatre but to the rest of my extended family I'm an actor and no matter how much I speak with them they just can't comprehend my world. We do this job because we love it and that has to be the reason you are doing technical theatre. It can't be because you want recognition.
When you are talking to people you need to remember that what we see and do is vastly different than the rest of the world and accept that we have to do more to help them understand. We see the world differently and that's what allows us to do our jobs well.
Coming from a mixed background of Theater and Physics (With a little bit of engineering in the mix) The way that I see the world is that there is no difference between art and engineering and science. Each one contributes to the human experience, to advance it. And on a personal level, satisfaction of creation and expression can be experienced through each. All of the things that "intelligent people" nowadays would not be possible without both art and science having been cultivated and developing in our culture. When people on both sides ask me "Oh, well why would you want to do science/theater?" I can say because they are the same thing, they both are interesting and awesome. There is beauty in Theater, and Beauty in Physics and Math if you can understand it and see it. It applies to both fields.
Having a background of technical theater allows me to have very odd, specific knowledge about things. I know the standard height of a doorknob, but I also know some of the physics behind light. And that type of diverse education, coupled with the artistic education really allows theater technicians to have a very unique perspective on the world. They can also be a large vat of knowledge for many different subjects. If you're a costume designer for a show set in the 1700s. Suddenly you know everything there is to know about 18th century clothing. And this knowledge grows the more plays you do.
This is a really interesting article on something I think of quite frequently. As a stage manager, I often find myself at an event or performance thinking quite a lot about the logistics of what is going on, how the cues are being called, how the scene changes must have been choreographed, etc. This can be a good and a bad thing, for while I gain (or lose) a lot of respect for the stage management team/run crews, I am often not totally involved as an audience member. Along the same vein, I have found that after being in a design class or discussing directing intentions, I am able to really appreciate the artistic value of a performance in a way I wouldn't as a regular audience member.
This is true in "real life" as well. I see the world differently. I remember a particular conversation I had with a high school teacher about costume design. He was talking about analyzing and understanding the depth of a character's style choices by delving into their closet: what do they keep in there? Why did they buy the things hanging there? What do they keep in the box on the top shelf? Then he asked me, "Why did you choose those earrings today?" and I realized that real people make design choices every day. Many members of my class jokingly cry out, "It was a design choice!" when they do something out of the norm, but I think I would have to argue that everything really *is* a design choice. When I look at the people around me, and not just at their clothes, I see all kinds of character choices that change the way I see them as a person. Why does she like to keep her hair pulled back? Why does he prefer boat shoes to sneakers? Does he go straight to the button-downs when he walks into a store? Is she okay with the wrinkles in her shirt or did she just not have time to iron it? These seem like silly things, but they are all examples of the way I see people since that conversation with my teacher.
This goes for the types of things we talk about when analyzing plays as well. Everything the playwright pens, we are taught, is a deliberate choice. And so when I am in a conversation, I listen to every word that is being said and every intonation put on it, because they are all choices that show what kind of person is speaking them and how that person thinks.
Perhaps this is a very roundabout way of saying that I see everything (everything) as a design choice, but the moral of the story is: from the limited theatre education and experience I have had, I have grown to see the world differently.
This article really describes how a lot of people working in technical theatre feel. I always pay closer attention to the technical elements when I see a show. I am always looking around and trying to find all of the hidden secrets. When there is a special effect in a show, I always try my best to figure it out or it puzzles me for a long time. I am always trying to figure out tricky scene changes and try and take away clever ways to make a show I do easier. As a stage manager I often think about better ways something could be done, if it is inefficient. I definitely look at the world in a different way since I became involved in theatre.
I think a lot of what this article is trying to say is that, as theatre people, it is important to appreciate and respect our own work, but also the work of others around us. Yes, we do not do what we do to get recognition. However, I think it is insanely important to take pride in the importance of our work. This article points out that if we begin to take more pride in what we do, and recognize what those around us do, we will begin to change the way society feels about people choosing an artistic craft as their profession. I know that when I was deciding what I wanted to go to school for, my parents were at first very opposed to be going for theatre. However, once I showed my parents that Stage and Production Management is an actual field, their opinion completely shifted. I think we need to learn how to appreciate our own work, but also make sure we show others around us that what we do is important work.
I just had a conversation on this topic early today with a group for a class project. Walking into a show as a technician, designer or manager you see things differently then the average joe theater goer. Once, I attended a show with my parents and when walking out my mom was in awe over a technical moment and how it could possibly happen and I was confused as to how she did not know how it happened. Then realized my mind likes to find the way it works and see all the technical behind it. Going to a show I spend about the same time looking at the lights and the technical equipment as I do watching the show itself. Our brains get trained to see things in a certain way.
This article was really well written and is a wonderful homage to the world of theatre technicians. It is true that our jobs make us examine certain situations in unusual ways, depending on our area of expertise and level of experience. It’s actually been really interesting noticing how my “technical theatre” eye has developed since I’ve come to school here, as I learn more and grow into different roles and responsibilities.
It’s interesting to think that this world view which makes so much sense to us is not shared by most other people, but that those others also do have their own unique world view depending on their current jobs and backgrounds. I think this is why it can be so enriching for theatre people to work and collaborate with people from different industries, since the different points of view help the team examine many different sides of an issue.
Everyone sees the world differently. you see the world through aspects of what you know of the world. We see the world in a design oriented world or in a technical sense. I really liked this article, it reaffirms firms everything I believe in.
But going back to seeing the world differently. With my experience in theater I now see things differently then a lay person. I see architecture as art and not just necessity, i appreciate form and function, i love to look behind the scenes at how things work, if its a stage production or just looking at the mechanisms in a gadget. I appreciate furniture because i know some things about woodworking, i love looking at joints, after working on the Orioles grounds crew this past summer and helping to maintain grass I see grass differently, how often is it watered, i can tell how it was cut, when it was last cut, if the blades were sharp, what type of grass it is. You see the world based on what you know and we happen to have a very interesting range of what we know seeing as theater is so broad that we see the world in a very interesting way.
I agree with the statements made in this article. We see the world, and more specifically the aspects of our industry, differently. For example, it is hard for me to be an audience member at a show. I am constantly thinking about how things are done, who is backstage, if it's going well, and how what they are doing here could inform my own work. It doesn't ruin the experience, but it definitely makes it different from what the "muggles" are experiencing. And it's difficult because it isn't a relaxing evening. It's an evening observing others do the job that I do. Furthermore, others are not able to grasp that. It is difficult to impossible to describe what technical theatre is in a way that the average person would understand. Ant that, ultimately, is what I believe is the driving force between the small world that we often talk about amongst theatre people. With others who know our jobs, we can more easily find common ground. Thus, a tight network of people who find relief in not having to constantly try to explain what their role is, and that, no, they are not actors, is formed.
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