Post Gazette: "Red" is that infrequent beast, a play of real ideas. These are about art, and they pour out in an idiosyncratic torrent, reminding you of that great college lecturer who assaulted mesmerized classes with nonstop intellectual provocation.
Tuesday, November 22, 2011
'Red' at Public Theater paints passionate message
Post Gazette: "Red" is that infrequent beast, a play of real ideas. These are about art, and they pour out in an idiosyncratic torrent, reminding you of that great college lecturer who assaulted mesmerized classes with nonstop intellectual provocation.
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3 comments:
I cannot wait to get home and go to see this show. I can honestly say though that I do not know much about Rothko or his work, but I am more than interested to learn. I like the experience that the Public always is sure to deliver. Intimate, interesting and usually pretty entertaining. Since 'Red' focuses on a time in Rothko's life when he was working on a big comission, it will be interesting to see how these stressors affect his work and his life.
Every article about Red gets me more excited to go out an see it (when I can finally find the time!) I love shows with so many interwoven intellectual twists and turns. It will also be interesting to see how the stress of work effects the personal interactions of the characters. As everyone knows, external stressors have the ability to greatly alter or strain relationships. I imagine the morph of these intellectual plights into something much more personal to be moving in an incredibly unique way. Whether it be this production or the next, I am definitely planning on seeing Red at some point in the near future.
The irony of this review is that it does for the play what the main character of Rothko in the play does to his new helper, wandering through discussions of art of society that leave the speaker gasping for air. Don't get me wrong, I love the play and think the Public has a pretty solid production, but am not okay with the assertion this is a review of the play. Categorically, I'd say this is actually more of a retelling of the plotline and context through lofty language necessary only to the author of the play itself. A short college essay if you will, where the student used a thesaurus to make themselves sound smarter. The author talks a LOT about the play and almost none about the production, making this article more appropriate for a personal blog post that a true theatrical review.
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