OnStage: It’s been a difficult week. From terror in Paris, Beirut, and Baghdad to racial tensions at the University of Missouri and other college campuses nationwide…it’s been a difficult week. When things get this hard and this stressful, I think back to a question someone asked me once when I was an undergraduate. “Why,” they asked, “when there are people starving, and terrorists, and police brutality, and injustice, and racism, and political upheavals, and homeless people, and so many other terrible things, WHY would you think THEATRE is important?!?” My answer then is the same as my answer now. Theatre is important specifically BECAUSE of all of those things.
6 comments:
I love that the author if this article calls on Oskar Eustis's quote calling theatre a "Democratic art". I agree with this label in the way that theatre is an art from that everyone can gain knowledge and understanding from. Theatre related the whole story of an event from multiple angles, giving the audience perspectives that they would otherwise not realize. people often try to forget about significant tragedies in history and succeed because they aren't directly related and they connect to something like that, but what theatre does is bring both of those things back into their minds. Like the author says, Theatre makes us think and talk about those difficult situations and gives new/real meaning to those events in the audiences eyes. why is theatre important in times like these? Its because theatre tells thier stories, and it tells them in the most real ways.
I think there are a lot of pros and cons to continuing to make art (and what not) during a time of crisis. What is great about continuing to make art is that it becomes a distraction from all of the awful things that are going on in the world. This can be really great because you are in creasing the beauty in the world. However, the real down side to this is that you become completely oblivious to what is going on in the world around you. You become so engrossed in creating art that you just forget about the world, and then when you learn about the news you are in such a state of stock that you can not do anything. You just do not know how to approach the world. There are pluses and minuses to both approaches. Neither is right or wrong, so just use your best judgment!
"Great theatre makes us think and feel, it helps us, perhaps, to know our enemies as people—to understand their thoughts, their objectives, their dreams, and their desires. And, if we can understand the humanity in those who oppose us, perhaps we can seek the inevitable common ground.' I think that this is precisely the aspect of art that theatre offers which other forms of art cannot. You physically hear, see and listen to characters pick the brain of other characters. It can be a beautifully metaphorical and touching way to explore emotions and issues that normal conversation cannot really allow. I sometimes also find myself caught up wondering if what I'm going to school for has any "real" value or meaning. There are people suffering, dying, escaping, and starving across the world and here I am, complaining about my design project being due while also having to juggle being on run crew. My problems feel so minute in the face of "real life issues" and so reading an article like this reminds me that what I'm doing *does* have value because theatre is where bottled up emotions and problems can be released and expressed. We as a people need to speak about difficult issues and many times, the stage is a perfect place for it because of the many reasons listed in the article. Theatre may not be joining the Peace Corps, but theatre is a remedy and a sanctuary for difficult times. And both of those things -- expression of sanity and humanitarian aid-- are equally important things.
This article really hits on what I've been thinking about this whole week. It has been a rough week, and it has been really hard to leave my problems at the door while working on shows throughout. It's easy to look at these horrible situations, and then look back at the show you're doing and suddenly the problems you're facing with the production look so small and insignificant. But then, during a dress rehearsal, the whole show starts to come together a little and you're suddenly aware that you're working on a show that speaks about how easy it is to fall into senseless violence. What is happening inside that theater is, in fact, very important. It's a space where people come to watch and soak in what is happening onstage. Depending on the message you're attempting to send out to the audience, during a crisis is EXACTLY when you should be doing theater. Not only that, but working in theater during a crisis gives you a place to speak and take action in the ways you know how, which is such a privilege. How lucky are we? What we do can be used to better the world and new ideas for doing so are always welcome and encouraged.
I think that it is in the time of crises when we need the theatre the most. I believe that theatre can represent all that is good in the world: culture, humanity, and acceptance. The arts has always had this role to play, even if all of society doesn’t realize it. As the article mentions, after 9/11, the reopening of Broadway provided some relief to the citizens of New York City. Theatre, especially in NYC, has had an ever present place in the city, providing stability to a constantly changing world. Racism, terrorism, xenophobia.The difficult subject matter that reveals itself in these types of crises is what theatre needs to be talking about. Theatre shouldn’t just be a distraction. Theatre should be a part of the solution by addressing these topics on the stage.
This is one of the best article's I've read from the blog. I think the author really hits everything spot on. Theater is important because it helps us and a human society to come together. Last week I was in rehearsal for Lord of the Flies and constantly checking (don't tell the SM!) the news to read what was happening, and in those moments it can seem silly that I am just in a world of pretend, and I should be doing something more to help. But I think theater is one of the most healing places. Telling stories through the performing arts lets audiences escape from their world for just a little while and become a part of something else. Theater is, and can do even more than it already does, push the boundaries and compete to expose political and worldly problems. Theater should be responsible for facilitating the difficult conversations that need to happen. At least, thats what I think, and thats why I'm here.
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