Exeunt Magazine: This month, CPT is hosting our all-new ‘Handle with Care’ festival, three weeks of performance exploring the hotly contested concept of the so-called ‘snowflake generation’ and all that comes with it – trigger warnings and safe spaces, microaggressions and no-platforming. You would imagine that, embarking on this season of programming, we must have our own story straight – on how, when and to whom trigger warnings should be administered in a theatre context?
4 comments:
I really like how this article pointed out that the two parties that content warnings affect, people who need a warning and people who want to avoid spoilers, are both in a small minority. Both groups should be accomodated, but the article stated that the people who don’t want spoilers have been prioritized historically. Thinking about it now, things that are usually in conet warnings are vague, like “Theatrical Haze” or “Strong Language,” which doesn’t really give away anything about the plot. The harm that can come from not warning people about potentially triggering situations far outweighs the audience already knowing there will be a gunshot in the production. All that being said, there is a certain shock value that may be desired by the artists. I heard from a friend that certain theaters will have a little curtain that covers the warnings, that can be pulled back by individuals who would like to know what the show contains, but doesn’t inadvertently give away anything to anyone else. The other big question I have is where is the line for what the audience needs to be warned about.
I really appreciate the end to this article that states that the job is never complete, there is always the need to remain one and vigilant to the needs of audience members. The article talks about catering to the major groups that watch theater (the ones who don't want spoilers and the ones who need warnings), it is important to not prioritize one group over another and treat them equally. There is no perfect method when it comes to trigger warnings and no perfect way to handle them which is why I appreciate the ending of the article so much. The idea is to make everyone welcome and enjoy the show without traumatizing the audience or spilling the beans. I also enjoy the perspective in which this is being approached. The approach aims to make theatre accessible to everyone and not elitist which it has been over the years and make people safe.
I loved how this article captures the many sides in the conversation about trigger warnings. I especially loved how they talked about having a comprehensive policy that works for all productions, no matter the time span and knowledge of the process. I have seen us run onto the same problem at CMU. Especially in the spring semester, we have a ton of shows and often sell tickets early, so the creative teams may not have made decisions on how certain moments are staged. Therefore, we may not be able to have the detailed content to consider that they do. I love how the article mentions that so many artists that CBT works with are in the beginning of their career and that it is important to give them the skills to take with them. The idea that CPT is looking beyond there theater and into the theater world as a whole is truly remarkable.
It is important to let your audience know what they are about to see before they see it. Especially in theatre, when there can be warnings about strobe lights or different types of sensitive materials that might make it important for an audience to know before they go ahead an intense script that might make someone uncomfortable or d watch it. If a scene had a very intense ending and a very intense script that might make someone uncomfortable or make it so that someone could not watch a certain scene or periformance because they should watch the scene, then it is the duty of the producer or the director or the crew, even, to make sure it is safe for their audience. Otherwise, they could risk making a wave In society they did not mean to make. I loved this article! It brought light to the importance of making trigger warnings.
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