She was “horrified and moved and fascinated,” and it wasn’t long before she was channeling her feelings toward a theatrical work.
“I was filled with a kind of curious, furious anger about it — I wanted to find out what had happened and why,” said Ms. Bishop, 28, a self-described “feminist artist who creates documentary theater.”
3 comments:
This is a really fantastic thing to see happening. I think that the theatre arts are really one of the most premier ways to explore these types of themes in a more blatant manner. What I hoped to see in the article was a sense that the play was being developed with the intention of exploring the deeper complexities behind the main theme that go back to the roots of the issue, which is really all about sexism. Rape is a difficult subject to grasp and explore, and I think often with material written about subjects nearly just as shocking, the playwrights can very easily get so caught up in how what theme they’re exploring can be used as a gimmick for improving the quality of their plot, which I dont seem to be getting a sense of from this show. This whole premise makes the idea far more exciting to look at from a social standpoint.
This is the kind of work that keeps theatre on its toes and ever evolving, bringing in recent events in history and portraying them in a way that might make people feel a little uncomfortable. Don’t we enjoy getting a response from the audience whether it is positive or mixed; it helps reinforce the notion that we are doing our jobs the right way. I don’t know much about the Steubenville case, but from what I’ve heard and read, and with the growing atmosphere of social media in today’ headlines that makes the smallest stories, top stories. It’s hard to hide facts like these. It will definitely be interesting as to the approach that Eleanor takes into making this production come to life, and all of the other factors that are associated with telling a story as relatable as it is today. So to take the events of the past and put them on the stage is what makes storytelling whether it be fact or fiction that much more interesting.
I am so happy to see that a director, especially a CMU director, is willing to push the boundaries of her work in this manner; often times I believe it can be difficult for people to accept works like this, therefore difficult for directors to go about creating them. But it is needed for this work to be done. Theater is about forcing an idea or image to the front of people’s minds, then growing a reaction out of those thoughts. Ms. Bishop is not only willing to “sensationalize” a terrible situation for the sake of forcing people to think, she’s developing her work along with the developments of the case, making it even less a work of “art” and more a work of “understanding” Understanding in that without her piece this girls story could go further unheard. But not only that she’s making it clear that actions like these are unacceptable, and will not be ignored, but rather brought to the light of all aspects of thought.
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