Friday, March 12, 2010
‘The Demons’ - 12-Hour Play, and Endless Bragging Rights
NYTimes.com: "Every theater season has its must-must-must-see show, the snob hit that separates the true sophisticates (at least in their own minds) from the cultural chaff. New York will have a doozy of a contender this July: a 12-hour production of a grim Dostoyevsky novel that will be performed only twice, in Italian (with English supertitles), in a warehouse on Governors Island, reachable only after a ferry trip and a 20-minute walk."
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7 comments:
It seems that part of the reason why the public has began to grow weary of the typical musical (apart form the health of the economy which is a large part of it) would be because the factor of intensity has been the only one that seems to be going up. It seems like this one would have a better immediate effect, kind of like something that you would mention at cocktail parties. However, with more time involved, now they become physically as well as emotionally attached. Now you have involved the ventromedial frontal region as well as the basal ganglia. Wouldn't this trigger more memory? Just as the cologne of someone lingers in place after they have passed, so it should be with memory. The question is: how much cologne is there?
I must say that I wish I could see this show. It saddens me the article really did not discuss the actual content of the show, it's a fascinating story that's extremely relevant for our times. I am taking a Russian literature class right now and we just read Demons. This is an extremely haunting novel taking place in 1860's Russia. It centers on a wealthy aristocrat literally trying to annihilate society and government to start anew. This character, Pyotr is obsessed with tearing apart a once peaceful town and is quite successful. The story displays the powers of ideas, and how people far to often grasp onto ideas without fully understanding them. There are definitely great governmental undertones in this story that are particularly relevant now. Bragging rights aside, I would love to see a production of one of Dostoeyevsky's great works - it is truly a wonderful but little known piece of literature.
I never thought of theater as something to "brag" about, possibly because I have never attended a marathon show such as this. A show like this is great though. It is truly an adventure, to trek across a river and then hike 20 minutes to the theater. Imagine if all theater was like this! What a difference it would be. It becomes an experience that is then worth bragging about- an all inclusive event that is 12 plus hours.
I wish theater was more like this. An event... an experience. It would really help change people's perceptions of theater.
I am not really sure what to think of this. I wonder if the show really requires that much stage time to get the story across. Maybe it does, but it would have to be a very long, complicated story. I also wonder if the theater just wanted to put on a 12 hour play because the could. This kind of work must be really hard on the actors, technicians, and everyone working on the show because you need to keep the intensity and interest up throughout the entire piece. I really do like the idea of a major theater company doing a big-name piece in some middle-of-nowhere theater space. I agree with those who think that theater can (though does not necessarily have to) be an experience and an event as opposed to simply a show. This production has the event down perfectly. The atmosphere that it creates is just important as the show. It will be interesting to see how the creative team uses the length of the show to their advantage.
Theater is really going in the direction of experience rather than just show these days. Unlike the Apollo 13 show, which literally involves the audience in the action, this show is much subtler about the experience. Instead of flashing lights and consoles, it has a complex story and a marathon length. I wish this show were going on for more than just a few days in NYC. I would truly love to see a show like this. I can't even begin to imagine what an experience watching a show for 12 hours would be. I'm thoroughly impressed by the actors, technicians, and director that they are taking on such an epic feat. I don't know how the actors have the sheer physical energy to do this show for even just three days straight.
I would also be very interested in seeing this show. Like Bryce said, this is much more of an experience, which I think is great. But, with a show like this, you have to be very careful. Since it is so drawn out and long, you don't just have to make sure you can keep the audiences attention for 2 hours, it has to be that good and that enthralling that it keeps your audiences attention for 12 hours....which is a lot of time. I could either be an amazing experience, or an incredibly awful one. I really do like how part of what is included is trekking to the performance area... I think that it really does make the audience feel like they are part of it.
Chris, I definitely see your point, but I think you're missing out on the bigger picture. Now I won't say this about every show...I will definitely say Inglorious Bastards did NOT need to be as long as it was. But I think this case is a bit different. So a group of people decide that they want to put on a 12 hour show. Why? Because they can, and they think it will be entertaining. That's good enough for me :) I know that doesn't always work in these days with budgets, demographics, ticket sales, and all the other factors that go into deciding a show, but if you can make a project like this work, I say go for it! You want to make actors perform for 12 hours? AWESOME! I would be stoked if I was an actor! I like how Bryce put it, it's like an adventure. A real trip. It's exhausting, but just think of the result and the experience of undergoing such an endeavor. It sounds like a major load of fun to me, although the production managers might not agree with me on that. I say carpe diem. Rock on theatre beings.
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