WM+-+Critique+1+Fuddy+Meers

The simplistic beauty behind literature is the individualistic nature adopted by each story throughout each reading. One piece of work can assume various manifestations within the confines of the human mind. Theater is a mechanism provided for people to express their own mental interpretations of the plays, books, etc. in physical form. Within theater, plays are advantageous because each performance is unique. Each performance assumes the interpretation of the director, actor, and others presenting it. Therefore, the play continues to have new life, being resuscitated by the fresh ideas of a new group of people. I had the opportunity of watching the play “Fuddy Meers” as it was performed by people connected with the University of Georgia. Overall, I think that the performance I attended was a good expression of the play, and I will continue be providing examples for this belief. The aspect of the play that best expressed the deeper significance behind the plot and characters was the costume design. The costume for each character helped to reveal the personality and experiences of the individual while also displaying the relationship between the characters. For example, the different costumes for Claire helped to show her perspective transition and development through the play. When first introduced, Claire is wearing a relaxing and common set of pajamas. The light-colored and oversized pajamas represent the child-like innocence that Claire experiences each morning when she wakes up. Because of her ailment, she has to be as a child, trusting in her personal interactions. Even when confronted with Limping Man and his terrible mask, she accepts his declarations and follows him without concern. Then, at her mother’s home, Claire changes into a summer dress. This change helps to portray the transforming view of the world and her acquaintances. The dress is more sophisticated and refined, allowing her to be better suited for her situation as a mother and wife. Though, at the same time, the color and style of the summer dress allows her to retain a certain amount of joviality and optimism that she is determined to keep throughout the play. The costume for Richard really accentuated his personal quest for the perfect happy family and life. At first introduction, he is wearing a typical bathrobe and carrying a cup of coffee and a big smile. The clean cut hair coupled with the vest, button-down shirt, and nice slacks act to almost drown out his past in this new cloak of frivolity. When one sees Richard, images of a black and white T.V. show or movie appear that have the husband coming down to kiss his wife in the kitchen before he heads of to work. The character of Millet was portrayed very well by the costume design. His mental disability and issues are further emphasized by his lackluster appearance. The loose tie, the suit buttoned with the wrong button, and the one pant leg higher than the other help to personify his insecurities to the audience even before he speaks. One way to improve upon his appearance would be to have him wearing two different types of shoes. With the attention already drawn down to his feet because of the pant legs of different lengths, the audience would half expect to see a white shoe on his left foot and a brown shoe on his right, or any other variation. I would have to admit that I did miss some of the dialogue because I spent my time trying to find even the smallest difference between his shoes. At first, the similar appearances of the characters of Kenny and Limping Man (Phillip) provide a connection between them that is not understood. I first wondered why the two would seem to dress with the same dark colors, jacket, and mid-length hair. Although I do admit that the personalities of the characters are best represented through these outfits, the thought came that the costume designer just got lazy or had exhausted his or her store of creativity. I wondered if there was another way that the designer could have clothed the actors to give the same impressions while also maintaining the characters’ individualities. It wasn’t until after, when the relationships between the characters are discovered, that the costumes began to take new life. The similarities of the clothes give physical evidence between the biological connections between the two people. The play was also displayed and framed creatively by the sets for each of the different scenes, but there were small details that could have been worked upon before presentation. First, I thought it was creative to portray two different homes with the same set simply by rotating it to present a different angle to the audience. Even though the same old oven and fridge and family photos are there, a different feeling overtakes the audience regardless to whether it is self-induced or seems to emanate from the stage itself. This feeling is stronger for those who sat in the center of the audience, where the full effect of the stage turning could be seen. But in each situation, the family photos and the disorganized magnets on the fridge connect the audience with the kitchen, stirring up memories from their own home. Thus the set transformed from simply any kitchen into the kitchen of each person in the audience, allowing the audience to become even further absorbed in the events of the play. The basement set was created fairly well. The stacked boxes of old memorabilia remind some one of their own basements and the buried treasures stashed away within the endless boxes and mysterious corners. It is only fitting that the hidden secrets about Claire are brought forth to attention by Millet amid the towering boxes of the secretive unknown. The only concern about that set was the window. As demonstrated earlier in the play, the window for the kitchen is on ground level so as to allow Millet and his puppet to talk to the other characters without climbing a ladder or standing on a set of stairs. If that is so, then the basement would not be high enough above the ground to allow a window to be in place. To fix this detail, during transition, a map or another large poster could cover the window to allow the audience to be further absorbed into the shadowy recesses of the basement and the dark revelations of Millet. The least engaging set was the car. Though it did provide an adequate space to perform the needed parts of the play, the construction of the car scene took away from the rest of the play. After the set was turned the appropriate direction, the car seats had to be projected from the rest to allow a better atmosphere for the characters and the play. Unfortunately, this meant that with every car scene, the seats had to be brought out and then retracted, during which, the audience’s attention has turned from the unfolding events to the stage hand managing the seats, and the impending question as to whether the seat mechanism would break or not would resurface each time. The overall lighting for the show seemed to be a puzzle. On one hand, the lighting for the actual scenes was well done. It illuminated the sets and the characters in the correct way as to draw the audience’s attention. The confusing part of the lighting was during the transitions. It seemed as if a myriad of different techniques and styles was used for each set transition. One time I noticed that lights of darker colors were sporadically turned on to provide the light necessary for the stagehands to move the furniture on stage into the appropriate places. But on another occasion, it seemed as if spotted lights were used instead. In addition to that, I thought I saw actual lighting strips on the set during the transition from the basement back to Gertie’s kitchen. I am not sure if these differences were intended with the purpose of conveying certain significances between the different scenes. If so, then those intentions were lost with the confusion. The sound effects for the show were executed with precision and had great impact on the audience. The beginning of the play is an alarm clock sounding in the dark. Its main purpose was to signify the awake of Claire, but it also served as an attention grabber for the audience. It was not too loud as to be overpowering, but it demanded the focus of each audience member. By starting with the alarm clock, the play was able to avoid the slow beginning and had a nice tempo to work with. I am not sure if an alarm clock with a quieter or louder tone or a different sound would have had the same effect. There were also many other examples of greatly timed sound effects that seemed to enhance the play: the radio, the dog barking, and the famous gunshot. Each time the sound was believable and detracted nothing from the acting of the play, thereby keeping the attention of the audience on the acting rather than inwardly questioning the capacities of the stagehands and director. The play "Fuddy Meers" is such a unique play that demands the coordination of many different costumes, lights, characters, and sets to provide the believable atmosphere for the audience. Though there were the small details that I have mentioned that distracted my attention, I believe that the performance I attended captured the deeper meaning behind the play enough to leave me leaning towards the possibility of seeing it twice.