Luke+Lujan+Final


 * 4. The videos that you were assigned to see regarding __Water by the Spoonful__ provide some revealing things about the purpose, development, and presentation of the play on stage. Comment on each of the videos that were assigned to be seen that help shape your opinion about the work. Knowing what you now know about production of a play from the work you’ve done on your final projects, what were some things you wish you could have seen that would have helped you to better understand __Water by the Spoonful__ and the production of it?**

__The playwright speaks about the play's meaning in connection with the Hartford Stage Company production.__ The author discusses the idea of the play being the difference between the family we are born with and the family we find. The sense of being geographically near one another, online and adopted. The obstacles of finding our place in the world and why we can not forgive others. Finding the answers to who we should fall in love with, who we should never talk to again and to recovering from addiction - - the choices in career/marriages. It is unusual to have a playwright be so insightful into their work and clear about its different meaning. I think this is extremely valuable in creating the play. When you start you have to figure out the meaning of the play. Then you need to take that meaning and have the entire production from the actors, to the lighting designer, to the costume designer, work together to put together a work that is cohesive. This will in turn create a piece that the audience can interpret.

__Playwright's opinions about the characters.__ The playwright talks about the wide variety of classes that the characters represent. I think that this is a way of allowing different audiences member to relate to these individuals. She also talks about how they are connected in ways that are both desirable and undesirable. In creating the play I would have attempted to emphasize these connections to the audience. Through the creation of these connections the building blocks of the play can be formed. It is these relationships that will show the mean of family and the obstacles that the playwright discusses in the meaning of the production.

__Director of the Hartford production speaks about the play.__ The director gives insight into the background of the play and playwright. He is trying to convey to the viewer of the video the general outline of the play without giving away the ending. He talks about Odessa and how she is hero to those in the chatroom. Yasmin and Elliot are two cousins who take different paths, but are complimentary of one another. He used the scene in the flower shop to talk about the brother/sister like banter that takes place between them. From what the Director discusses you see that he thinks of the play as many couplings of people and they way that they interact with one another and with the larger of the groups (online/in person). The insight given by the director would set the actors on the same path. As discussed in class it is difficult to get the entire cast to understand what is trying to be produce as a whole. Although you may tell them how it should be acted ultimately the actors have to figured out themselves how their character is supposed to fit into the larger framework of the play.

__Oregon Shakespeare Festival trailer advertising the production__ This video displays the use of background by at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival and how they create the online atmosphere while using the separate promonate blue squares to show the disconnect in location. They also use those same squares in a unique way at the end to display the water fall across the stage. This is a unique and effective way of introducing the different locations of the play. These different locations could make it initially challenging to perform, without confusing the audience.

__OSF dramaturg discusses the play__ This Dramaturg studies more the structure of the order of events. In this way she looks more at the musical structure that is used by the playwright to structure the play. John Coltrane’s album //Ascension// is a strong influence for the structure of this play and the dramaturg goes into much detail about the meaning of the play. When we were studying this play in class this style of writing, due to the playwright’s musical background was something that was discussed early on. I think that the dissonance the dramaturg speaks about is the underlying theme that creates the flow of the play. This is important for the reader to understand. In Act 1 it can be confusing where the play is taking you until Act 2 when everything comes together with in person interactions. This dramaturg has gone the furthest in interpreting the structure of the play which is very important to the plays performance.

__OSF director discusses the play__ The director also discusses the fit of John Coltrane’s work in the play. He speaks about a line in the play saying that John Coltrane democratized the notes, that not one note is more important than the other. This director goes into depth about the meaning of this and how it fits in everyones life. This is a confusing speech about how the jazz lives in the play and how the play fits in daily life. In the end the confusion is due to the fact that he is attempting to direct a soulful but thoughtful play with many ideas. These are two themes that are difficult to get across but the writing and its structure (jazz/musical) allow for this type of attempt. __Scene from the Chicago premiere__ I think that this scene is performed really well. It was easy to tell what was going on in the scene due to the spotlighting and the use of the computer keyboard. The small but effective sound made when they finally log into the account begins the online dialogue and separates it from the in person one. I think that the movement of Orangutan across the stage shows the separation of the characters and their unknown identity. This is something that is much more powerful to see done, after a disconnect has been established on stage.

__Another scene from the Chicago premiere__ This interaction between Haikumom and Fountainhead you can see how much Haikumom is attempting to help Fountainhead. You can see that she cares for Fountainhead even though you find out she knows relatively little about him because he has been lying in his posts on the website.

__Scene from a Lyric Stage Company, Boston__ The Lyric Stage Company did a great job of creating the online interaction in a way that is not complicated and easy to understand. In the short amount of time I was able to view the play I was able to see how their interactions, although they know little about one another (only what is shared through the chatroom), display how they care about each other. This small look influences the importance in the words that the characters are saying to one another. There is a relatively small amount of movement on stage. I would use this in my production to my advantage by making the movement of a characters minimal. This would make any movement of the character very strong and bring a dramatic effect to the scene. As witnessed above in Orangutan movement across the stage.

__Strange opinions from NY theatre critics:__

The reviewers tell us that that the poster is confusing and does give off clear intentions of the play. In this short clip they seem put off by that, rather than intrigued into the meaning of the poster. They also stated that the play was Pulitzer Prize winner, and that was one of the reasons why they were attending the show. They marketing team could use this to their advantage, drawing in an audience that wants to see an award winning play. The only downside to this would be that these audience members would mostly not go in with open but minds but instead would give the play many expectations to live up to. The reviews seem to not fully understand how the plays two story lines connect with one another, and the confusing way that the play is performed. This could be something that the stage and lighting designer could have addressed better. In order to make the online conversation more prevalent the use of spot lighting could have been used to create space and a disjointed look to the characters. The spot lighting could have displayed different backgrounds and locations. The reviewers say that in the end the play comes together but ends up feeling more like a movie, and has a lot of cliche. They also talk about how the set design does not do justice to the writing. These grievances are things that the production team might have been able to see while developing the play. Water by the Spoonful brings up interesting challenges to the set design with the online interaction. Although it may be easier to put on in a movie format, I have found that the challenges that are faced throughout the production/creation process lead to more creativity and ultimately better ideas.

These various interviews provide inside in to Water By the Spoonful that would not have been gained through reading it alone. It was very interesting yet unusual to see a playwright share so much about her body of work. Throughout the different interviews you get a feel of the depth of the play and although very similar interpretations.

**2. We spent considerable time in class seeing a DVD about the development, rehearsal, and presentation of 4 Broadway musicals. Discuss some of the major topics that were introduced on the DVD. Next discuss what you learned from the DVD about the making and development of these commercial ventures. How did they differ one from the other? What were some of the unique features of each? What were some similarities that they all seemed to share?**

The DVD displays how the four Broadway musicals of //Avenue Q, Wicked, Taboo,// and //Caroline or Change// are all ultimately at the mercy of the critics. This is displayed throughout the film by the continued return to the scene where the critics are discussing each of the plays individually throughout the movie. These plays do a Pre-Broadway try-out opening to the public before opening night when they open and the critics come and have the ultimate say. Most plays that are negatively reviewed do not remain open for long. No matter how well these pre-opening night shows sell, the critics eventually have their say. This would at many times make or break these plays. This make/break aspect illustrates another theme that was taken into account in the DVD which is the business nature of Broadway. Broadway is a cutthroat industry. Throughout the DVD we followed only four plays. The path taken just to get to broadway is a difficult one but as we learned in the video that is just the beginning. Wither or not they will be success is another question entirely. As discussed in class and in the DVD their were many other plays that were also up on broadway during the running of these four plays. A very prominent scene in the DVD was when they flashed through a large number of these plays displaying each play’s relative lack of success. Most of these plays the class had never heard of before. Some of the play’s that were displayed in this scene had relatively short life-spans, while others never opened. These play’s cost thousands of dollars to create and are at a large loss when they are unable to turn a provide by staying open for a long period of time. Each play is different and each one takes a different path getting to broadway and attempting to stay there.

//Avenue Q, Wicked, Taboo,// and //Caroline, or Change// each differ greatly in budget and creation. Another difference in these plays that was displayed in the DVD was the difference in style. The people writing them differ greatly in background and in the path taken to broadway.

//Avenue Q// is a play that was portrayed as almost a dark horse. It followed an unusual path using puppets and puppeteers to create a musical that was witty and attempt to reach adults that grew up watching __Sesame Street__. //Avenue Q// was written by two relatively unknown musical composers Robert Lopez and Jeff Marx. This is displayed in a scene where the two composers are standing outside of //Taboo// attempting to speak with Boy George, who they are large fans of. They were new to the broadway stage and their very focused target audience made them an easy target for critics throughout the DVD. Although, they opened to a successful showing on Broadway and was even nominated for multiple awards, even winning the Tony for best musical.

//Wicked// was composed by Stephen Schwartz. This play is very different than //Avenue Q//, because it is seen as the main attraction. They had a well know lyricist and composer in Stephen Schwartz and a large hollywood like budget. Their cast was made up of well known actors. They show itself had many special theatrical effects. The play is almost a prequel to the witches of the very well known story __The Wizard of Oz__. This play is suitable for many ages and targets them with its ties to Oz and all the success that the original story had. This play was well received by the critics and to no surprise did very well on Broadway. This play was also nominated for multiple awards, even winning the Tony Awards for Best Scenic Design and Best Costume Design. It did however lose the Tony for best musical to //Avenue Q//.

//Taboo// was different from all the other plays in the fact that it was a play that had been originally done in West End, London. This play features the well known artist Boy George. This play targets an audience who is familiar with Boy George and those who lead alternative life styles. This was a play that was brought over and funded by a very well known figure in the U.S. named Rosie O’Donnell. Her presence at first welcomed large media attention, perhaps the most of the four plays followed by the DVD. It was later in the production phase when O’Donnell was having legal disagreements and ended up getting into a legal battle that ultimately took away from the play itself. It was all the drama that was going on off stage that doomed this play. The critics called to this drama multiple times throughout the DVD. It is reported that Rosie O’Donnell lost her ten million dollar investment in this broadway piece.

//Caroline, or Change// is a play that it written by Tony Kushner. This story sort of follows themes that Kushner underwent during his childhood. This is a story of an African American maid for a Jewish family during the American Civil Rights movement. This is most likely the most dramatic and serious of the four plays followed. This play was unique in that their lead role was played by Tonya Pinkins, who was once a well known TV actress. This show was almost a dramatic comeback attempt and her performance was well received. Kushner is well known writer and the critics had good things to say. Although, in the DVD some critics questioned the simple set design of the washing room. The play saw relative success and was also nominated for multiple awards. Although these four plays differ greatly, they all share the similar circumstances of attempting to make it on the big stage and ultimately being at the mercy of the critics. Each play faces different obstacles along the way with the main one at the end being the critics. The DVD makes this very prevalent in displaying the dinner discussion of the critics throughout the movie. This similar circumstance creates a bond between the plays. Although in the end they are competing for sales and awards you see each play relatively giving support to the others. In the end the roads taken are different but the journeys are all very similar with the same end point in mind.

**1. Identify the features of __Angels in America__ that qualify it to be categorized as an example of theatricalism. In what ways does the play differ from the various video illustrations provided to you on the wiki schedule page for Oct. 23? Provide specific examples to support your opinions. And finally discuss how the video examples from the film demonstrate some of the unique features of the HBO film version of the work linked to Oct. 30 schedule page.**

There are many features in Tony Kushner’s play //Angels in America// that qualify it to be categorized as an example of theatricalism. Theatricalism is defined by [|dictionary.com] as “being conduct suggesting theatrical actions or mannerisms, especially of an extravagant or exhibitionist”. Three examples of this throughout //Angels in America are// the characters of Mr. Lies and the Angel, the use of split scenes, the idea that many actors play multiple characters. In //Angels in America// there is a character named Mr. Lies. Mr. Lies is an imaginary friend of Harper’s friend, who is a travel agent with IOTA or International Order of Travel Agents. This character is played in a style in which his speech and dress suggest that of a jazz musician. This characters is only seen by Harper who has a mild valium addiction and is home alone for long periods of the time waiting for her lawyer husband, Joseph Pitt to come home. These scenes are very theatrical in the scenes that Harper is the only one able to see Mr. Lies. She is also able to carry on discussions with him. Another element of this relationship is the fact that Mr. Lies disappears just before Joe arrives home, vanishing in thin air. This is something that the HBO series is able to do uniquely well. Their ability to use special effects and post editing to make Mr. Lies vanish, made these very theatrical elements seamless in the TV version of the play. In order to do the vanishing on stage it would be very difficult and the use of smoke, lighting would have to be utilized.

The Angels that exist in the play are another theatrical element. One of the most prominent of their scenes is the interactions they have with Prior right before Louis appears for the “dance with me” scene listed in the video list. Their existence is theatrical and their heavy white make up and period style outfits make up the Continental Principality of America. The HBO film once again does this very well. The Angels are able to disappear or vanishing seamlessly. Prior is also to able to ascend from a romantically lit stairway that appears where a wall once stood. And at the end of the scene when Prior is still dancing Louis seems to vanish as well. This is done with camera angles in the HBO scene. The switching of angles makes Louis’s disappearance very dramatic. The scene ends with Prior reaching for his bad leg and falling to the ground. The movement of these characters on and off stage to the effect of “vanishing” would have been difficult to attempt on the stage.

Throughout the play there are split scenes that take place. This is not realistic and is a very theatrical approach to presenting a play. For example in Act 1 Scene 8, their is a split scene where Harper and Joe are at home and Prior and Louis are in bed. The scene opens up with Harper’s angered interaction with Joe; almost a cry for his attention and then moves without warning to Prior’s and Louis’s scene. Then towards then end the play switched simultaneously between the two scenes without making a clear distinction between the two. In Act 2, Scene 4 their is another split scene that takes place, this time Joe and Roy are in a fancy straight bar and Louis and a Man are in Central Park. Joe and Roy begin the scene when Joe begins to discuss his marriage trouble with Roy due to his wife’s, Harper, increased Valium addiction. The scene then suddenly switched to the Man in the park and Louis’s sexual back and fourth. Then it switched back and forth between Roy and Joe and the Man and Louis without warning. Each of these transitions are not started in the writing but are understood with the split scene set. This is a very theatrical thing to do, having two stories and dialogues take place at the same time switching between the two without hesitation.

Throughout the play almost every actor has another role in the play at times being almost the opposite role of the additional role they play. Belize is supposed to be played by the same actor who plays Mr. Lies. Mr. Lies is supposed to have a style, dress and tone that suggest a jazz musician. A jazz musician is a very manly type of role. Where as Belize, is a registered nurse who is a former lover of Prior’s. This character is so feminine or drag that his original name was Norman Arriaga, but the drag name of Belize stuck with him. Another example of this duel role theatricalism is Rabbi Isidor Chemelwitz, an orthodoxes Jewish rabbi, being played by the same actor playing Hannah. This is theatrical in itself in the idea that Orthodox Judaism does not ordain female rabbis. The HBO TV version of this play does an exceptional job of portraying the rabbi convincingly. Admittedly, this is greatly due to the job that Meryl Streep does as Rabbi Isidor Chemelwitz.

Although //Angels In America// has many theatrical elements, it is very much situated in a reality. The story takes place in New York and is based on the real character of Roy M. Cohner. The theatrical element of Mr. Lies and the Angels, the use split scenes, the idea that many actors play multiple characters is done in a much more subtle way. This style of theatricalism used by Tony Kushner makes the play much more believable. For example many of the illustrations done elaborate costumes and over the top sets. In Beckett’s work //Play,// the characters are all on a continuos loop and are placed in large pots where only their mud covered faced are visible. In Robert Wilson production of Sonette Shakespeare both Sonnet 23 and Sonnet 71 are done with very dramatic but subtle movements. In Angles in America the movements are made to be similar to those made in everyday life and to seem realistic. The make-up in Sonnet 23 and costumes are all white, and have a classical feel and fit to them. The makeup has subtle outlines of black used on the faces of the actors. In //Angles in America// all the characters with the exception of Mr. Lies and the Angles, are dressed fitting for the time period. This also differs from the all black outfits that are worn by the characters in Sonnet 71. The stage is simple with three large white gas pumps and hoses. This makes for a very strong contrast between the character that appears at the end and is wearing all black. The set of //Angels In America// once again is very believable taking place in people homes and in the city of New York.

In the //Apollo// Lunch Counter, Shen Wei's //Folded,// and //Pina Bausch s//cenes very systematic movement of characters is created. In //Apollo// this is done until the two colored characters sit at the counter and “disrupt” the flow of everyday life. This systematic blocking differs from the realistic blocking done by characters in //Angels in America//. Also the use of manipulation of time in //Apollo// Lunch Counter (by slowing it down and speeding it up) is a very over the top use of theatricalism that makes the movements very prominent. The use of puppets in //Shockheaded Peter// performed in London displays a very theatrical element that is less believable in the role that Angles play in Kushner’s work. One reason for this is the idea that the Angels are played by real living people.

Angles in America is a very unique play in that it has many theatrical elements but that it is situated in real life issues. The play is meant to make you view its various unbelievable elements while still believing in what is happening. This in itself is the very idea of theatricalism.