Exeunt Magazine: There’s something peacock-gratifying to the ego about seeing your own name in academic print. So thanks, Dr Kirsty Sedgman, for repeated references in your book The Reasonable Audience to a blog I wrote for the Guardian in March 2015 about relaxed performances. The post was prompted by a discussion at Battersea Arts Centre in London, which raised the possibility of all theatre performances being relaxed, with occasional “uptight” performances being programmed to accommodate those who prefer to experience live theatre in a strictly controlled and rarefied atmosphere.
1 comment:
The idea of re-evaluating the context in which we present theatre is something that is really fascinating for me and something that I think would greatly benefit the artform itself. We like to say that theatre is for everyone that really great theatre has something for everyone but in our current format we’re excluding so many people from seeing it. These are some of the reasons that people outside the industry see it as an elitist activity that they do not “fit” into but with the rules of standard theatre viewing we have in place I can’t say I really blame them. One of the reasons I believe theatre has survived so long is the human component that makes the audience able to connect in ways that other forms of entertainment are not capable of doing. So to me it seems counter-intuitive to put such strict restrictions on how people are reacting and can view theatre. I love going to theatre events that are less formal, maybe because I do spend so much time in formal theatre settings, but I think this avenue is a great way of opening theatre up to more people and making it less of an elaborate event.
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