Sunday, October 25, 2009
Are They Laughing? Are They Moved?
NYTimes.com: "NEIL SIMON is nervous. For all the success of his 82 years — a Pulitzer Prize for drama, three Tony Awards, many commercial hits on Broadway — a part of him still judges his self-worth by how much audiences laugh during his plays. Now the most personal of his works, the autobiographical “Brighton Beach Memoirs” and “Broadway Bound,” are being revived in repertory on Broadway for the first time since the original productions ran for a total of five years during the 1980s."
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8 comments:
I could not imagine the fear and anxiety he must have sitting in rehearsal of this play. To see your life story and family onstage is pretty nerve racking. And to read he has a memory problem and increased illness, one has to question how much he remembers. I would not want to be one of those actors onstage with Mr. Simon sitting in the audience examining you, questioning every move you make. Although it is nice to hear he is staying out of the process as much as he can, I woulnt be able to do that. I would be up commanding changes and working directly with the director to help find those dark moments of the family, to not only make it more real but a stronger play in its final product.
The importance which his audience's laughter plays to Mr. Simon is a sentiment I can understand. Laughter presents an audible cue that lets us know when an audience is enjoying themselves. Mr. Simon's work on Brighton Beach Memoirs however, underlines the fact that humor is not the only way in which people can be moved. While comedy can be smart, witty, and charming, the reaction it evokes can't really be called visceral. As Mr. Simon told his director that he did not want the play to be "sunny" or "cute", it seems to me that he has shifted his focus from giving his audience mostly immediate gratification and is instead thinking of more long term impressions. Wanting to move his audience in a lasting and deeper way is perhaps an urge that stems from advancing age and a sense of mortality. Like Pharaohs and Emperors most people like the idea of leaving a lasting legacy, and maybe this is why Mr. Simon has, at least in part, shifted his focus.
For someone who is used to writing for audiences in the 60's, it must be worrisome to have them put up now. Humor changes a lot depending on time periods, even decades. I would find it difficult to stay out of the rehearsal process, especially since the play's subject is so personal. However, since he had so much success in the past, one can only assume that these shows will do just as well.
Sitting on your hands in rehearsal as a playwright of a revival must be one of the most annoying experiences. At the same time, I commend and respect Mr. Simon for being able to do so. I think it is a smart move. He definitely wrote them for a different audience, but Mr. Cromer is the one who will be able to make them work for today's audience. It will be interesting to read how today's audiences react. I think they will enjoy it because family relationships are still based on the same basics that they were 30 years ago. Also, everyone can relate to families, because we all have them, therefor they should be able to relate to the play.
Speaking as a huge Simon fan, I have to say it is almost a relief to see so much vulnerability in an artist of his stature, even after all these years and so much acclaim. He has to be one of the best known playwrights in the industry, and yet he's still nervous about upcoming work. That's something I really admire in a playwright/artist in general: always a deep connection to your work and fear it will be rejected. I think that marks a very strong and compassionate individual, especially during a revival, because the pressure is on to come back bigger and better. So I guess the pressure never actually does go anywhere?
This makes me very excited because its bringing together a director I like with a writer I love. I saw this director's 'Our Town' last year and was incredibly moved by it. If anyone can make Neil Simon's heart shine through, its Cromer. I also think that Mr. Simon's nerves are natural but silly. My 17 year old fell in love with him this summer and bought all his plays. Neil Simon has the gift of being able to touch people of every age and generation.
I applaud Mr. Simon for stepping back from the creative process to allow this production to live without his input. I think that this a difficult thing for writers to do but very important. By stepping away from their work, they are allowing new approaches to come to it and the piece might improve somewhat with the inclusion of others' ideas.
It is so factinating to me that such an accompished playwright is still nervous whenever his showa are produced. I wonder how well he balances staying involved with the production, without running the entire production. It sounds like such a hard balance since he worte the play and is so emtotionally attached.
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