Theatre Development Fund – TDF: Water bottle? Check! Lozenges I'll unwrap before the curtain goes up? Yup. A change of clothes? That last one might seem like a strange thing to pack for an evening at the theatre, but as I learned a few years ago at Forced Entertainment's And on the Thousandth Night (which began at midnight and ended at 6 a.m. so audiences could watch the sun rise on their way home), sometimes you need a fresh shirt—especially if you've been at a production for most of the night.
10 comments:
To be honest, I didn’t know shows like this existed! I think it’s super cool that they do. I don’t really binge watch shows a lot these days (I’m more a fan of watching shows as they’re released every week because it’s easier to plan out a 30-minute chunk once a week instead of a 3-hour one in a day), but it would be so interesting to go to a long theatrical production like this. I find myself always talking to people in lines, people I’m sitting next to at the show, etc. and I’ve met so many great and fascinating people that way. It’s always a memorable experience just with a regular length show that I can’t imagine all the incredible bonds people can make with a long one like this. Like the author said, it’s so lovely sharing an experience with a group full of strangers, and I really want the chance to do that someday.
Now that two part shows are becoming more popular, I question if people have the attention span to sit through such a long piece of theatre. I'm surprised to find that some people do for six hours straight….and enjoy it. It's refreshing to hear that people have the ability and desire to, but I wonder how practical this style is. Being a manager or a member of the run crew would require a significant amount of stamina to remain focused throughout the show. Additionally, as an audience member, I would likely need time to decompress from all the storytelling. One aspect I do find particularly special though is the fact that after one part of a two part show, the same group leaves and re-enters the space. Even if the audience doesn't interact with each other, it's interesting to consider how the energy might feel different than with an entirely new group.
I’ve never heard of marathon theatre before this article and honestly I think it’s a really cool idea. I definitely don’t see enough theatre and especially coming from New York City, I should know every play that is running right now, it’s a real shame. Binge watching television is something that everyone is guilty of and is something that is hard to escape. And when people go to see theatre it's considered an outing or event to many, so combining the two makes the idea even more appealing. I think there’s also a stigma around the activity of going to see a show. For a lot of people it is very nerve wracking because it feels like a social outing but this almost makes it easier to look forward to the shows that you’re going to see. Having episodic theatre could actually encourage more people to come and see some shows, including me.
This is such an interesting concept. It seems like we moved away from longer forms of entertainment for a while. To see our generation get through Gone with the Wind or Titanic in a single sitting is usually deemed a miracle. But we seem more willing to watch eight hour-long episodes of a series in a single sitting than a single three-hour film. I love this concept of breaking the long piece into many segments to make it seem more digestible to the audience. The idea that the audiences are “all in this together” is also a really beautiful segment. Sitting alone in your room in the dark streaming Netflix creates a loneliness that is escaped by experiencing a show with an entire audience surrounding you. I think this is a really great way to grow the community connection between theatre-goers that can increase the amount of young people and the amount of people overall attending theatre.
Binge watching theatre is a really strange concept to me, mostly because the idea of binge watching a TV show is very closely related to wanting to be on the couch all day, in my opinion. I have never been to a 2 part broadway show, or show anywhere, so I’m taking this author’s word that it is a fun experience. Unfortunately, my attention span is probably much more damaged than theirs. I think what is so interesting about this is when she dives in to the idea of people changing in between shows, creating an entirely different vibe. Also, the idea of having the exact same audience for two theatre performances is so strange to me. Like, seeing a familiar face in a theatre that isn't at my own school is pretty uncommon. I would really like to see if I have the will power to sit through 6 hours of a broadway show- I'm sure I could.
Binge watching theatre is a really strange concept to me, mostly because the idea of binge watching a TV show is very closely related to wanting to be on the couch all day, in my opinion. I have never been to a 2 part broadway show, or show anywhere, so I’m taking this author’s word that it is a fun experience. Unfortunately, my attention span is probably much more damaged than theirs. I think what is so interesting about this is when she dives in to the idea of people changing in between shows, creating an entirely different vibe. Also, the idea of having the exact same audience for two theatre performances is so strange to me. Like, seeing a familiar face in a theatre that isn't at my own school is pretty uncommon. I would really like to see if I have the will power to sit through 6 hours of a broadway show- I'm sure I could.
In a world of Netflix, Hulu, and various other streaming sites it often feels that entertainment is available whenever we want it, for however long we want to watch it. The term "binge-watching" was born from this fact. However, I often find that because of this binge culture, it results in a lack of appreciation for entertainment. I often find that I have a hard time sitting and watching something for long periods of time, and even when I am sitting for 30 minutes and watching one show, I notice my attention span getting shorter, and I find myself reaching for my phone and scrolling while watching. However, I wonder how this experience shifts from the perspective of live theatre. I still find that I would have a very hard time sitting for several hours, however the experience that is described seems super interesting. Especially the idea of having the audience members watch a 6-hour show in order to watch the sunset upon leaving the theatre seems like an incredibly unique experience.
I am not a big fan of binge-watching theatre. For me, theatre-going experience includes booking a ticket, watching the trailer repeatedly, following SNS for the production, going to the theatre to see the show, leaving the theatre amazed, and last but not least, slowly digesting a large mass of information of live theatre and engraving on my memory. The last process takes three days at the shortest. Therefore, I always try to book shows at least a week apart from each other. That being said, my theory does not apply two-part plays. I do binge-watch episodes of a serial drama, because I want the story to be concluded. The same feeling applies to two-part plays, which makes me book both part one and two on the same day. However, I always find myself exhausted at the end of the day. Although great two-part shows have amazingly rich content and tempts the audience deeper into the world, I might prefer theatrical shows to be completed in a single story, because there is a limit to how much information I can receive in a day and I do not miss any of the events happening on stage.
For me, the aspects of binge watching television series is that I can either multitask if I do not care about the show or I can catch up super quickly and I do not have to get off of my couch or bed. I understand the challenge of “binge watching” marathon or multi-part theatrical shows but it does not seem like an enjoyable experience for me. I - as is the case with most humans - only have so much attention to give in any period of time. I also cannot imagine blocking out two separate periods of time to go to and from a space. Everything about this concept - while interesting - seems tedious to me. That may just be me being lazy or traditional or whatever but if I am going to binge watch something, I would like for it to be from the comfort of my own home. Similarly, if I am going to the theatre I would like to make an event of it and know that I will be fully enraptured for no longer than about three hours.
I personally really want to see Harry Potter parts one and two, but there are even more obstacles than usual to see a show. One- it’s twice as expensive. Two- it takes a whole day so you must stay overnight. This summer I worked at a rep theatre where you could come for two days and see all six shows. This provided a full schedule where there was little time between the shows. The benefit was that you didn't have to stay for a long time to see all the shows. The concept in itself is not new. Long shows have always been there if you know where to look. Personally, I love the concept in theory but in practice, if I'm binge-watching I want to be under a blanket on a comfy couch not in a theatre seat where the expectation is to stay politely seated. I think it would be interesting to combine long shows with a relaxed performance concept. The relaxed performance concept allows people to move around as they please and eat. This would make a long show much more appealing to me because I think it would allow for a break as I needed it.
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