So... based on general consensus... and maybe it was just because of the cast... but I would defintely say that this was the hit/ talk of the festival. That being said, in spite of the long lines, I waited my forty five minutes, and my opinion.... it was totally worth it.
Now, first of all I have never seen a play like this before. Like all... commentary like? It was different for me, but I REALLY liked it. It was much more engaging on the audience's level in my opinion and that's what I truly appreciated. The way I saw it, the "Actors' wants" were to convey a message to the audience, and what better way than to just TALK TO THE AUDIENCE!
So as far as stylistically, I thought it was pretty darn cool.
But this was I what made the play worth it for me, and to be honest, though I did find it funny, the humor wasn't what made the play. It was the two monologues by the big guy , over the pressure placed on little girls and Jenny's over self security.
See, to me, those monologues WERE the play. And while the humor was real, and funny, it was merely the means to the end.
I don't know if this is the way it was ever viewed or planned. But in my personal opinion, to get an audience to a certain level of emotion one has to loosen them up somehow. Make them more vulneralble, or simply make them more emotional. Humor, is the perfect tool for such a task. And the humor from this play did just that. It got the crowd to drop their guard and lean completley in to the play. We were so entranced by it, that we would have raised our hands for anything, eaten any bowl of fruit loops we were handed, and listened to just about anything those actors had to say. The humor, was the jab that made us drop our hands down, and then BAM! The sucker punch.
Just when we were most vulnerable, and totally consumed, the tone is really set. The issue hits us square in the jaw, and I can't speak for everyone, but I felt it. I genuinely felt crushed, for both Jenny, and all the little girls, as were mentioned in the other monologue. Maybe I'm a big baby, but it's the truth.
So yes, 101 ways was the funny play, but in actuality, it was the real play. And it was pulled off so well, that I litterally felt it. Simply great.
Monday, April 6, 2009
Our own Works of the New...:-)
I would like to say first off that I enjoyed hearing everyone's plays! Everything was so different, unexpected and exciting. I am just writing on a mixture of plays from the two days we read. I do not have feedback for everyone sorry.
Hmm I will start with Andy's Play
Andy, wow. So at the start of the play I was like oh how sweet a couple. Then it got awkward because of her little elevator idea. Then I was curious as to what was going to happen. And at the ending I had a major "Oh Snap! Are you for serious?" moment. It was an emotional roller coaster, not like the bad rattlesnake roller coaster at six flags kind of way, but in the fun exciting Batman coaster kind of way. I Loved it! The twist at the end definitely sealed the deal for me! It was genius that she was the mother of the kid who went to jail and that their whole relationship was secretly built on revenge! ah gold!
Next up...KAT
Kat, I really enjoyed your play. The relationship between John and Mark was clear from the start. I knew that they were great friends having a phone conversation, I liked the twist that it was not just any phone conversation. It was being held over a live radio! There was an interesting thread which you wove in the plot that I really just ate up. The fact that the book which was written was made from confessions and here is this glorified Pulitzer prize winner confessing his sins over the radio. Not only this, but he is like the priest he wrote in his book! That's just something I took from it. I also liked your alternate ending, i think it went well with your piece.
uhm, lets do Josh!
Josh, Amelia is beautiful. I was held captive by the language you chose to accentuate the world you created. The world of a tortured man's mind. I like that to receive background information on our character a friend from the past must come to the future to settle debts and regrets. I think its amazing you wrote all of the lyrics for your songs. The idea of the women in flappers and men in tuxedos are not only characters but also pieces of the set is genius. As I have said before, it is cool that they pick up props or set pieces as they fall. The use of cloth in the suicide I enjoyed, has a dramatic theatrical air about it. Great work.
Julia, your play was wonderful. I like the change you made to the ending . The passing of the grandmother is softer and I think it blends well with the rest of your piece. For me it acts emotionally as a bridge between how I felt during Anne's tales of her fantasy life and then of her real life. The manner in which you chose to depict Anne's life was so creative! What can be more fake than Barbie?! Since Anne was telling a plastic version of her life, the choice of Barbie was very befitting. Great job!
Bryan, I really enjoyed the transformation of your play. Isabelle is definitely one of my favorite characters, I love her spunk. The elaboration of Nolly was great! I really like the surprise of his character you brought to the table. Your alternate ending was great. Everything really fit together in your rewrite. I have no more questions and as where before your piece felt open ended like there could be more, this ending provided enough closure. Like for example you were to expand this play. You could add something else behind this ending if you felt you needed to but it is most certainly not necessary. Also Great Job!
Well I am afraid that is all.Good bye everyone!
Hmm I will start with Andy's Play
Andy, wow. So at the start of the play I was like oh how sweet a couple. Then it got awkward because of her little elevator idea. Then I was curious as to what was going to happen. And at the ending I had a major "Oh Snap! Are you for serious?" moment. It was an emotional roller coaster, not like the bad rattlesnake roller coaster at six flags kind of way, but in the fun exciting Batman coaster kind of way. I Loved it! The twist at the end definitely sealed the deal for me! It was genius that she was the mother of the kid who went to jail and that their whole relationship was secretly built on revenge! ah gold!
Next up...KAT
Kat, I really enjoyed your play. The relationship between John and Mark was clear from the start. I knew that they were great friends having a phone conversation, I liked the twist that it was not just any phone conversation. It was being held over a live radio! There was an interesting thread which you wove in the plot that I really just ate up. The fact that the book which was written was made from confessions and here is this glorified Pulitzer prize winner confessing his sins over the radio. Not only this, but he is like the priest he wrote in his book! That's just something I took from it. I also liked your alternate ending, i think it went well with your piece.
uhm, lets do Josh!
Josh, Amelia is beautiful. I was held captive by the language you chose to accentuate the world you created. The world of a tortured man's mind. I like that to receive background information on our character a friend from the past must come to the future to settle debts and regrets. I think its amazing you wrote all of the lyrics for your songs. The idea of the women in flappers and men in tuxedos are not only characters but also pieces of the set is genius. As I have said before, it is cool that they pick up props or set pieces as they fall. The use of cloth in the suicide I enjoyed, has a dramatic theatrical air about it. Great work.
Julia, your play was wonderful. I like the change you made to the ending . The passing of the grandmother is softer and I think it blends well with the rest of your piece. For me it acts emotionally as a bridge between how I felt during Anne's tales of her fantasy life and then of her real life. The manner in which you chose to depict Anne's life was so creative! What can be more fake than Barbie?! Since Anne was telling a plastic version of her life, the choice of Barbie was very befitting. Great job!
Bryan, I really enjoyed the transformation of your play. Isabelle is definitely one of my favorite characters, I love her spunk. The elaboration of Nolly was great! I really like the surprise of his character you brought to the table. Your alternate ending was great. Everything really fit together in your rewrite. I have no more questions and as where before your piece felt open ended like there could be more, this ending provided enough closure. Like for example you were to expand this play. You could add something else behind this ending if you felt you needed to but it is most certainly not necessary. Also Great Job!
Well I am afraid that is all.Good bye everyone!
New Works Festival: Nomadic Dream...
This play was very good. I have no scale for it based on stars or alphabet or whatever... it was straight up good.
First off, it was a very interesting idea, for those who didn't see it, it was the switch of these three individuals from different lives through their dreams, so it's a lot to explain but baisically it was a story about different perspectives on life, and this was done through dreams.
To me it really struck a chord in that it was almost a play that symoblically represented the all-too-common college dillema of figuring out one's life without willingly forcing yourself into a box. Even though those in the play were professionals, the play was about a fresh start of the mind, and staying open to the fusion of ideas into something that may have never been done before. (Creating our "paper cakes" ;)
I also must comment on the tower play! Really, well done! It wasn't just a play in front of a tower, it was a play with a tower, and I loved that!
First off, it was a very interesting idea, for those who didn't see it, it was the switch of these three individuals from different lives through their dreams, so it's a lot to explain but baisically it was a story about different perspectives on life, and this was done through dreams.
To me it really struck a chord in that it was almost a play that symoblically represented the all-too-common college dillema of figuring out one's life without willingly forcing yourself into a box. Even though those in the play were professionals, the play was about a fresh start of the mind, and staying open to the fusion of ideas into something that may have never been done before. (Creating our "paper cakes" ;)
I also must comment on the tower play! Really, well done! It wasn't just a play in front of a tower, it was a play with a tower, and I loved that!
Psyche Project thoughts...
After watching this play I remember leaving the theater thinking how I was going to explain my love for romance without sounding like a love struck pre-teen. In addition to this how the hell was I going to write a blog about the play in general without sounding too girly. Alas, I doubt I can avoid it. Personally, for the first time, I realized the best way to immediately get my attention is to have some type of romance conflict (which the psyche project provided for me to drool over). I thought back to my every favorite book, movie, play, anything. They all have some sort of romance conflict. AND what type of literature basically invented romance in general?? EPICS. I have seen many movies that have remade plots based from epic stories however this was the first play I have seen that used epic backgrounds. I feel that this interpretation was amazing. This was the first play that I have seen that actually made me realize something about myself. This alone has sky rocketed this play to the top of my list of favorites.
Psyche
This play was another of my favorites. I loved the modern twist to an ancient myth! Cat walk entrances with men in dresses...Hell as a shopping mall! (don't you feel that way at times?) What a brain tickle! I honestly enjoyed everything, not a complaint. I love that eros' mother was played by a man. He did a really swell job! especially at the end when there was so much emotion and tension, I forgot that he was a man. The dances that were incorporated into the scene was a very interesting choice. Every intimate, personal moment was a dance. Whether it was a special moment between Psyche & Eros, or Psyche battling with Doubt and Anxiety or Eros with Ego and Fear.
When watching Eros' or Psyche's battles I thought the choreography was done in such a way that I could tell that Doubt or Fear were real characters because we were in a supernatural world but also that they were nonexistent in a way because these were also internal battles. I just really enjoyed it. Hats off to the cast! great work Fellow classmates! I really enjoyed each of your characters and thought they were executed beautifully!
When watching Eros' or Psyche's battles I thought the choreography was done in such a way that I could tell that Doubt or Fear were real characters because we were in a supernatural world but also that they were nonexistent in a way because these were also internal battles. I just really enjoyed it. Hats off to the cast! great work Fellow classmates! I really enjoyed each of your characters and thought they were executed beautifully!
New Works Festival: The Mariner
The first play I saw was the Mariner, which I had heard the song by the Decemberists (though I don't pretend to know it that well), and to be honest it seemed like a total minor league player, but for what it was, I enjoyed it.
One of the first comments I heard was that it was done totally by undergraduates (Which I assumed to be true?) but this intrigued me rather than deterred simply because, I am an undergraduate.
In my opinion, I give the play an "A" for effort, and a "B" for execution. First all I would like to say that I enjoyed it. And I thought the writing and the stage direction, as well as the visual affects were well done. The dialouge had depth, and the black lighting, along with the female "background?" was an interesting take on illustrating what it would be like inside a living creature.
I felt that the issues of the play revolved around heavy internal conflict that all of us deal with on some level or another. Not that any of us want to be pirates, but that each of us struggles with our own personas and who we want to be underneath.
What I disliked about the play was the acting. It wasn't bad, it just wasn't really "in character". The expressions, the emotions, and pretty much the lines in general were delivered well, but this did not feel like it was a couple of pirates arguing inside the belly of wale, it felt like it was a couple of college kids in pirate costumes arguing.
Also I felt that while the issues in the play were real and personal, the father and son connection seemed forced and unnatural to the story. All along, the boy was good, then all of a sudden he is like, "Just kidding, your my dad, I hate you, lets both die!" I just didn't feel that there was enough transition, which was a bummer because up until that point I had enjoyed the play.
So overall, I'd say not a great play, but I enjoyed it and it certainly was a good one!
One of the first comments I heard was that it was done totally by undergraduates (Which I assumed to be true?) but this intrigued me rather than deterred simply because, I am an undergraduate.
In my opinion, I give the play an "A" for effort, and a "B" for execution. First all I would like to say that I enjoyed it. And I thought the writing and the stage direction, as well as the visual affects were well done. The dialouge had depth, and the black lighting, along with the female "background?" was an interesting take on illustrating what it would be like inside a living creature.
I felt that the issues of the play revolved around heavy internal conflict that all of us deal with on some level or another. Not that any of us want to be pirates, but that each of us struggles with our own personas and who we want to be underneath.
What I disliked about the play was the acting. It wasn't bad, it just wasn't really "in character". The expressions, the emotions, and pretty much the lines in general were delivered well, but this did not feel like it was a couple of pirates arguing inside the belly of wale, it felt like it was a couple of college kids in pirate costumes arguing.
Also I felt that while the issues in the play were real and personal, the father and son connection seemed forced and unnatural to the story. All along, the boy was good, then all of a sudden he is like, "Just kidding, your my dad, I hate you, lets both die!" I just didn't feel that there was enough transition, which was a bummer because up until that point I had enjoyed the play.
So overall, I'd say not a great play, but I enjoyed it and it certainly was a good one!
101 ways
So WOW! I loved 101 ways oh so much! I thought it was brilliantly written as well as performed! I like the idea of creating a play centered around something that is so relevant to our society...MAGAZINES! Not just magazines in general but how we as a society revere magazines. How they affect men as well as women in different ways. I enjoyed that it was a comedy that poked fun at magazines and how people read them and internalize them. It was a comedic truth. I adored the story of the teacher bringing her Cosmo to class and how the young boys were interested in it as a tool to understand the female psyche. Oh and the bit where the man is taking a quiz and toys with the mind of his other male friend. This thought never crossed my mind but the more I think about it...guys probably do read quizzes and laugh about them! Great Idea. The make over bits also genius it made the play interactive. As I watched 101 ways I felt I was seeing a magazine come to life right in front of my eyes and through characters or comedic moments I felt I was watching myself or a friend.
Loved it!
Loved it!
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