Los Angeles Times: “Witch” begins with Maura Tierney facing downstage and speaking directly to the Geffen Playhouse audience, some of whom are seated not more than 2 feet away. She is playing Elizabeth Sawyer, the town’s outcast, whom the devil assumes will be an ideal customer for his offer: Why not get a little revenge on the residents who’ve wronged you for years — in exchange for your soul?
4 comments:
This was a fascinating read. I find it disappointing that someone would try and shut down such genuine and raw reactions to art. In my opinion, it is a testament to how beautifully crafted a show is when the audience's reaction is so loud and emotional. Theatre is live, and in my opinion, is supposed to immerse people into its world. They aren't just an audience; they are a part of the story. I cherish moments in theatre that make me cry or laugh or feel. I think the author of this article summed up that feeling of community and unity in this part:
"And after the third gasp, we all laughed together — maybe because we felt such delight in letting ourselves get swept up in the moment, or maybe because we heard how many others felt exactly the same way. What a joyful few seconds it was, to feel understood not only by a piece of art but by one another."
I'm confused as to why someone would regard that as a bad thing, that someone who cannot appreciate the fact that theatre can bring people together in this way is so unashamedly vocal in embarrassing and shutting others down in their moment. As a creator of theatre, in fact, I live for the moments that an audience feels this sort of emotion! I would be angry if someone made them feel like they couldn't be vocal about their feelings because I think that is the goal of theatre!
I really enjoyed this article and it made me chuckle especially the ending. It is sad to see that people don't have a place where they can react and respond things without it being called inappropriate or loud or told to calm down. Theater is supposed to serve as a form of catharsis for the people who are a part of it and experience it. Reactions and responses should not be policed by anyone or anything especially in a theater setting this means that there is no safe place for people to completely express themselves. This responses and reactions are what causes people to bond and create community with each other. This is why each individual's experience is unique to them in its own way. I also found it really funny that it was a man with a smug smile on his face shushing women that were watching and reacting to a play written and directed women.
This article strikes a bit of a personal note for me. The Geffen Playhouse is just a couple minutes’ drive down the road from my home in Los Angeles. The last show I saw there was Constellations, a drastically different type of show than Witches, described in this article. As for the subject of the article itself, I believe Lee’s point of view is valid. Yes – although theatrical productions are rehearsed and choreographed and refined over countless hours of hard work, the audience is experiencing the piece. They have the right to react to what they’re seeing. Maybe they will let out an audible reaction at times. This should not be cause for others to be mad, unless the reactions become a distraction from the show. However, in Lee’s defense, a series of gasps during building moments of action definitely did not warrant the man to yell at them. I definitely believe that the man overreacted to a couple of in-sync gasps.
First of all, I’d love to see this play! It looks awesome and I hope it goes to some other regional theatres so I can experience it! Regarding policing theatre-goers reactions, I agree with the author. Obviously this is a case-by-case basis, but I do think that in this case it was egregious for the man to do this. This show, from what I understand, is about women being able to express themselves as they choose, so it’s ridiculous for this man to think it’s ok to do this. I think that there can be inappropriate responses to theatrical performances, but this is not an example of that. So-directly to this guy: please stop. It's much ruder to speak during a performance than it is to laugh. You disrupted the performance way more than the laughing could have been.
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