CMU School of Drama


Friday, February 13, 2015

An Art for the Commons in a Commons for the Arts

HowlRound: All I need is space.

A room with some chairs is enough. I suppose, in my ideal theatre, there would be some kind of light to separate me from the audience. That’s why I often bring a bag of three or four clip-on lights with me. The kind we used to incubate a new clutch of chicks with as a kid. Two eight-dollar extension cords and a power strip. And a boom box.

1 comment:

Unknown said...

This piece is really beautiful, and it capitalizes on a phenomenon that seems to be ubiquitous in performances today. With advances in technology, the actual performance is often trivialized. So much of what a modern show is today is about the production surrounding a performance, and not the performance itself. It is refreshing to read about an artist who values the performance, and recognizes that truly, at the root of all performance is the need for space.

While I firmly believe there is a vital place in performance and production for technology, there is also an absolute need for modern theatre to refocus on the actual performance itself. I believe that as long as the technology allows for a clearer, more faithful rendering of the artist's vision then it still has value. But if the performers become secondary pieces of the production, I begin to become uncomfortable with our ability to create environments. Furthermore, the artist's ability to connect personally and unhindered with the audience is often hampered by the whiz-bang of the technology around them.