Pittsburgh Tribune-Review: "City Theatre is bringing a new look to a timeless classic, says Tracy Brigden, the company's artistic director.
The production of 'Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde' that begins performances Saturday will have a look and feel that's more Goth than Victorian, says Brigden, who is directing the production."
10 comments:
Two comments on this one. Firstly, goth seems to be the new black (pardon the bad joke) when it comes to stories that take place in Victorian times. Down to the dead bird in the hair, it's a production that feels like it has Tim Burton's hands all over it. I'm still interested and excited to see it and see Susan's work, just irked by that.
Secondly, I love the use of technology to run the "Find Hyde" scavenger hunt. I am a huge proponent of using technology to expand the theatrical experience. I have been writing an alternate reality game, a live-action game that shares the idea of exploring a real-world environment in the grips of a fictional story with the Hyde and Seek (again, bad joke) game. Hopefully at Playground!
The scavenger hunt that City Theatre is using to promote this show is a very cool concept. It's awesome that they have tied in the current technology and set up a hunt to help promote the show. I hope I have time to maybe participate next weekend.
I hope to see this show in the coming weeks, it looks like it is going to be an interesting production.
On a side note, best of luck to you Brian in creating a game for Playground.
The scavenger hunt sounds awesome! and it will heighten the awareness of the surrounding you are seeing the play in, when you eventually do go and see it. I will definitely be following this scavenger hunt sometime in the next week or two.
The production itself looks fascinating as well- Susan has mentioned a little bit of it to us in class, and this article clarifys a bit of what she was taking about with the time period and themes of it. Also, the idea that the whole cast plays Hyde at some point is intriguing. can't wait to see it!
and brian, if you want help, i'm interested
This is an interesting take on the classic Victorian style. I love how theatre can be interpreted so many different ways... I'm very excited to see this! And I think that the scavenger hunt is an awesome way of advertising! Like the article said, with everything being so technologically advanced, it was just a matter of time till the theatre world started joining in. There are so many different companies and stores that provide discount codes and specials via text message, but I think having it be an interactive experience really adds to it in a very positive way.
I have always wanted to see this show. The fact that Susan and Joe are working on it makes me want to see this particular one. Hopefully I can get a group f freshman together to go so that we can see our professor's work. The show sounds so awesome from the article and from what Susan was telling me about it the other day. The concept sounds cool.
Having seen a production of Dr. Jekyl and Mr. Hyde done in the traditional sense, I feel that this is an interesting interpretation of the piece. The whole theme and underlying tone of the work is the duality of human nature. I feel that by giving this darker exterior it forces the audience to look deeper in the piece for the good. This thereby symbollically signifies the need to search deeper for the good in humanity. I look forward to seeing this production and the work of one of my professors.
The goth approach to "victorian" is nothing new, yes, but it's not necessarily a bad thing. I've seen some productions of this show that have been very strict to the Victorian look, and those shows do not lend themselves to the scary, upbeat atmosphere that the show should have. So, while the idea may not be so new, I don't think it's been used in theatre all THAT much.
The scavenger hunt is great! I'm glad to see City Theatre is picking up the ball on the new types of marketing. It seems that various movies and TV shows have also been doing this recently--there was some small "crime scenes" setup in major cities for "The Dark Knight," and some others for the TV Show "DEXTER." I think this is even more fun for the theatre, as it IS a live medium.
Kudos to City Theatre, and good luck, Brian, on your game!
I really can't wait to see this production--though the original novella is transformed into something new with each proudction, I like the jump in set and costume that City Theatre took. Setting this classic story apart from the many renditions gets difficult at a point, and with the help of such a fresh look into the characters (especially with four different actors playing one man!) it sounds like it should be fantastic.
i agree that "goth" is a popular theme today but it also allows for such creativity and movement with design. I have been hearing a lot about this production and I really want to go see Susan and Joe's work. I also havn't ever experience the play version, only the musical. I also think there is something to be said for updating a Victorian look almost as a commentary on current society. The give and take between modest society and gothic brutal society.
Speaking as a HUGE Stevenson fan, this sounds freaking sweet! The story is all there, but I agree that the vision they are taking this with will most likely work, mostly because for audiences today, it need spicing up without being excessive and painful to watch (Jekyll and Hyde The Musical, anyone? So ridiculously BAD). American audiences in general like extreme situations, just like extreme food combinations. Traditional Mexican food isn't good enough for us, we need lots of hot sauce and flavour to spice it up. With Hyde, we need women and sex and violence. Pure and simple.
Break legs that aren't yours Susan Tsu!
Love,
Sharisse
Post a Comment