Friday, October 21, 2011
'Time Stands Still' asks an existential question
Post Gazette: The camera's there to record life. Not change it." -- from "Time Stands Still," a play by Donald Margulies Digital photography has made taking pictures as easy as snapping your fingers. You pop off one shot after the other of children, parties, a snowstorm or your cat looking adorable. You don't even need a camera; the cell phone will do.
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2 comments:
I had the chance to see Time Stands Still last night at opening, and it quickly became one of my favorite plays. The play offers no easy answers or decisions - there is no less ambiguity for the audience in whether to support or deplore the characters' actions both on ground zero and in the domestic life than the characters experience in the question of whether to intervene in situations of tragedy.
I want to call out the designs of the production a little since the article made no mention - the exposed beams and blue tile windows and skylight of Tony Ferrieri's modern Brooklyn loft surprisingly both tighten in this intimate play while creating the most open and comfortable-to-live-in apartments I've seen on stage. Joe Pino's music choices for the transitions flowed seamlessly between American alternative and Middle Eastern, to the point that only the lead singer gave away the origin of the song.
I really loved this production and encourage others who missed the chance to go on opening to find a way over to City for this one.
This show sounds like a fascinating, intimate insight into what it means to be a journalist, or some other type of observer. Is documenting and distributing information about an event as important as participating and helping with the event itself? I remember watching a video about the famine in Somalia a while ago and wanting to condemn the journalists for not helping the starving children they were filming. It seems that “Time Stands Still” addresses this attitude towards journalism and provides a new perspective. Hopefully I will be able to get to this show next week!
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