I know you wanted to talk about Dark Matter in theatre, but I'm also a film student and I had a project this semester about Orson Welles. Attached is a video clip about the illusive "Rosebud" from the movie Citizen Kane. Rosebud would be the dark matter in this clip because you never really find out about Rosebud until the end of the movie. Rosebud is never really in the movie in a sense that Rosebud is not a person, but a place or is it? The whole entire movie is devoted to trying to find out who or what Rosebud is and if it is a person, how can they contact that person. We, as the audience are given a clue as to who or what Rosebud is. For example, when the snow-globe is dropped and breaks, and we see only a mouth saying "Rosebud."
Even within the clip, the way Orson Welles films it, we never see the faces of the people. So, does that make them "Dark Matter?" Are they really there? And, can they be considered real or naturalistic, that is if you cannot really see their faces? Interesting to think about. I believe that Orson's decision to put the faces in shadow could be defined as "Dark Matter." It's like they are there, but not really.
I did find a theatrical example although there is a film version. The second clip is from a Broadway production of Harvey. It shows several instances when the Poouka Harvey is "in the scene." Now, the character "Harvey" would be considered Dark Matter. He is a character in the play but we never see him except in the painting of him on the mantle. I also love the Jimmy Stewart movie version.
As far as showing how the Holocaust is concerned, I honestly would not know how it should be represented, whether on stage or in film. Schindler's List did a fairly good job with it and I don't think it could have been done any better.
"Rosebud"
Harvey
Saturday, September 27, 2014
Sunday, September 21, 2014
Disruption Theatre
When I read Act Up, the first thing that came to mine was "Flash Mobs with a purpose." I suppose in the context of our class, that would be an example of a disruptive theatre. However, growing up in the 60s and 70s, we had several unusual kinds of "performative theatre." I remember the sit-ins, and protests about the Vietnam War, some of which turned violent (like the Kent State massacre). I also remember several of the "in the theatre" performances which would be considered unacceptable if they were done in today's theatres. I witnessed an Alvin Nicolias dance performance in New York City in the 70s which was done almost entirely in the nude or at least in flesh covered tights. For us in the 70s, it was very shocking. Could that be done in today's theatres without some controversy? That was also during a time when "streaking" was popular. So, the question is, would "streaking" be considered a "performative" act or theatre? It was not very effective then except maybe to get a rise out of the press. The "streakers" usually didn't have a specific motive or cause that they were promoting. They just did it for the fun of it.
On the other hand, today's Flash Mobs are entertaining to watch if that is their purpose. In that case, yes, Flash Mobs could be considered a form of theatrical entertainment. In fact, they could be used to bring theatre into the 21st century by exposing theatrics to the general public. They could also be used to encourage more of the public to actually go to a theatre to watch a production, especially if the Flash Mob is doing a scene or part of a scene of whatever production they are working on. Even watching the "Thanksgiving Day Parade," we can see short performances of the shows on Broadway. Now, are they just "advertising" for their show, or are they really performing for the sake of performing? It would be cool to see an actual full performance done on the street.
Sunday, September 14, 2014
Real or Not Real?
I've thought about this prompt a lot. I haven't seen that much "real" plays or plays that follow the exact or close to the exact story of an specific event. However, I did see LSU's version of Spill and that seemed real to me as far as the circumstances of the actual spill goes. Having not watched the news that much, I didn't really know that much about it. I just know that there was this big oil spill in the Gulf. Watching this play, even though it was people acting out the story, it was very eye opening. And yes, I did believe all their stories. What really made it real was the paintings of people in the lobby, of the "real" people the story and the play revolved around. I understand that is was just a play and the actors were performing and in that sense, it was not really happening. But, when I heard that the people involved saw the play and remarked that it was exactly what happened to them and how it portrayed their experience and feelings, that made it even more real. Having the actual picture and video clips shown in the production as "proof" of the actual spill also made it "real." It was very "heart wrenching" seeing those pictures, especially the ones of the animals and how the spill effected them.
Another play I saw, way back in the 70s, was A Raisin in the Sun in New York City. This play was very real in the sense that it was about a family in the poor part of the city. Although the world of the play seemed real and could really happen, it was not "really" real because it did not happen exactly as it was portrayed. Or did it? It could have happened exactly as it way it was portrayed. One thing that makes it not "real" is the fact, unlike Spill, it did not revolve around a known incident that was in the news. It was also not advertised as being involved about what happened to people involved in a particular incident or being based on the story of these people. But on the other hand, it was also "real" in the sense that they used real furniture and props on the stage. Maybe the story did happened to a real family, I don't know.
Another play I saw, way back in the 70s, was A Raisin in the Sun in New York City. This play was very real in the sense that it was about a family in the poor part of the city. Although the world of the play seemed real and could really happen, it was not "really" real because it did not happen exactly as it was portrayed. Or did it? It could have happened exactly as it way it was portrayed. One thing that makes it not "real" is the fact, unlike Spill, it did not revolve around a known incident that was in the news. It was also not advertised as being involved about what happened to people involved in a particular incident or being based on the story of these people. But on the other hand, it was also "real" in the sense that they used real furniture and props on the stage. Maybe the story did happened to a real family, I don't know.
Saturday, September 6, 2014
Performativity
I found two types of performance activities. The first one is from the Japanese movie "Departures." It is about a young Japanese cellist who loses his job and gets another job as an undertaker even though his wife doesn't know at first. This clip shows how he has learned to perform the ritual of cleansing and preparing the body for the funeral. This is done in the Japanese culture as a ritual and a time to let the family say goodbye. He is very careful in each step of the preparations. In a way, this is a performative act in that he is doing this in front of the audience, which in this case is the family. His movements are almost like a ballet.
What is important to understand is that the Japanese people will shun any person who has this type of job thinking that it is undignified. That is until they need their services. During the course of this movie, his neighbor wanted nothing to do with him until mother died and he needed him. By witnessing this ritual, he was grateful for the skills he learned as an undertaker.
I picked this particular clip because the "girl" he is preparing is really a young boy who is a cross-dresser. If you watch the whole movie (with subtitles), you will find that they have to ask the parents how they want the body to be dressed, as a girl or boy. The parents finally come to terms with their child's sexuality and agree to let him be dressed as a girl.
The second clip is an example of a performance utterance. This clip is from an interview with Mary Cronk who is a midwife. It is about her ideas of what women say about themselves and how destructive that can be and how they "don't fail." It is interesting that she says that some women need help during their labor and don't need to feel that it is their fault. I also like that we as women, need to be careful how we describe ourselves and to be careful of the words we use. She says, "Women don't fail." Do we or is it how the "world" and "society" makes us want to thinks that about ourselves as failures? This clip makes me think that I don't have to fail because someone says that I'm inferior.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MyMFXW57VQ8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ycutSsGIAkA
Sue
What is important to understand is that the Japanese people will shun any person who has this type of job thinking that it is undignified. That is until they need their services. During the course of this movie, his neighbor wanted nothing to do with him until mother died and he needed him. By witnessing this ritual, he was grateful for the skills he learned as an undertaker.
I picked this particular clip because the "girl" he is preparing is really a young boy who is a cross-dresser. If you watch the whole movie (with subtitles), you will find that they have to ask the parents how they want the body to be dressed, as a girl or boy. The parents finally come to terms with their child's sexuality and agree to let him be dressed as a girl.
The second clip is an example of a performance utterance. This clip is from an interview with Mary Cronk who is a midwife. It is about her ideas of what women say about themselves and how destructive that can be and how they "don't fail." It is interesting that she says that some women need help during their labor and don't need to feel that it is their fault. I also like that we as women, need to be careful how we describe ourselves and to be careful of the words we use. She says, "Women don't fail." Do we or is it how the "world" and "society" makes us want to thinks that about ourselves as failures? This clip makes me think that I don't have to fail because someone says that I'm inferior.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MyMFXW57VQ8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ycutSsGIAkA
Sue
Monday, September 1, 2014
Intro - What is Performance? blog
I think the idea of "living history" as performance is an interesting concept. I have been to several different historical sites and witnessed people dressed in the costumes of the time and "performing" different acts of what people did in that time period. For example, in historic Williamsville in Virginia, there was a man who, dressed in revolutionary style garments, was making rings for the spectators out of horse shoe nails. We stood there watching him, amazed!
Another time, at the Magnolia Mound plantation in Baton Rouge, I was a witness to several women in "Civil War" dress greeting visitors, making bread, and roasting chicken in the outdoor kitchen as they explained how women cooked during that time. They remained in character during the whole process.
Carlson discusses similar cases in his article. He describes an activity at Fort Ross in Northern California about a husband and wife dressing in costumes of the 1830s. They are greeting visitors as they come in. She plays the piano, but stops because she doesn't feel that she is good enough to perform. However, she and her husband are still performing because they are in the "character" of the people they are portraying just like the man making the rings out of horse shoe nails and the women greeting visitors and cooking at Magnolia Mound.
When my kids were in Boy Scouts, I worked at a leader training called "Powder Horn." On the first day, we had to dress in the costumes of South Louisiana in 1819. One time, I ran the trading post during a Cub Scout summer camp. Our theme was "Pirates." I played the part of a "Wench" and was in costume. I even got "robbed" by the other youth leaders several times. The cub scouts loved watching our "performances!" It made their time at camp entertaining, so in that sense, we were "performing."
Another time, at the Magnolia Mound plantation in Baton Rouge, I was a witness to several women in "Civil War" dress greeting visitors, making bread, and roasting chicken in the outdoor kitchen as they explained how women cooked during that time. They remained in character during the whole process.
Carlson discusses similar cases in his article. He describes an activity at Fort Ross in Northern California about a husband and wife dressing in costumes of the 1830s. They are greeting visitors as they come in. She plays the piano, but stops because she doesn't feel that she is good enough to perform. However, she and her husband are still performing because they are in the "character" of the people they are portraying just like the man making the rings out of horse shoe nails and the women greeting visitors and cooking at Magnolia Mound.
When my kids were in Boy Scouts, I worked at a leader training called "Powder Horn." On the first day, we had to dress in the costumes of South Louisiana in 1819. One time, I ran the trading post during a Cub Scout summer camp. Our theme was "Pirates." I played the part of a "Wench" and was in costume. I even got "robbed" by the other youth leaders several times. The cub scouts loved watching our "performances!" It made their time at camp entertaining, so in that sense, we were "performing."
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