In online video games, the word meta easily translates to “Most Effective Tactic Available”; in theatre, however, the word metatheatre does not have the same concrete definition. According to The Oxford Encyclopedia of Theatre and Performance, metatheatre is defined as a drama that is self-aware of its existence as a play and not reality (Pelligrini). Even so, many scholars like the literary critic Terry Eagleton have been ruminating about what exactly the term means. Anne Washburn’s play-within-a-play, 10 Out of 12, tries to take on the concept of metatheatre by looking at postmodernism in a theatrical light. 10 Out of 12, which the Theatre and Performance Studies (TAPS) presented on March 2018 at the University of Toronto Scarborough (UTSC), …show more content…
For instance, when his co-worker Jake comes back late from their break, Paul immediately berates him, saying, “You don’t lose track of time. You are punctual to the moment… Punctilious. Polite. Correct” (63). When the stage manager advises Paul to leave since he is not supposed to be onstage for the current scene, Paul criticizes the play itself, saying, “I’m offstage, where I am able to give [the play] my full attention. In all of its vague and sloppy glory. If ‘glory’ is the word I most want to use. Which actually it isn’t” (64). Paul’s meticulous desire for perfection – both in his co-workers’ timeliness and acting – creates distance between Paul and the other (more postmodern) …show more content…
His constant display of flowery speech, for example, is reminiscent of past history. One of the more prevalent scenes that parody Paul’s elaborate speech is when he becomes captivated by his hands, saying, “They are large hands. There is something broad about them, almost the hands of a labourer, hammish. But not. Ham. Hands” (Washburn 51). In the scene, he starts of being poetic and modernist, but later breaks it with a comedic and parodic comment about hammish hands. By parodying the past, 10 Out of 12 goes against “the canon of modern drama” (Carlson 510; Banes and Caroll). In doing so, 10 Out of 12 opts for harmony between modernism and
The stage performance did an excellent job being true to the play. The stage manager, who is
The Seagull does this, but only to a short extent- there is a small play performed within the play, and there is talk about the relevance of theatre and art to modern life. In contrast, SFB is a veritable motherload of meta. The characters know that they’re characters, and that they happen to be performing for you. They even know that they’re specifically in an adaptation- in our specific production vision, we like to see it as our characters taking the story into their own hands to retell it. The audience see two overlapping worlds: the reality the characters face in the plot of the play, and the constructed reality of a theatrical
Theatre reflects the society in which it is in. Use of particular elements of drama and production in Harrison’s Stolen and Keene’s Life Without Me and evokes the audience’s engagement and understanding of the dramatic meaning that is created. By exploring the development of the character’s personal concerns the audience can effectively engage with and consider the cultural issues expressed in these two plays. By highlighting and exploring these key issues the audience is challenged and confronted with a representation and reflection on parts of Australian culture. The thematic issues and concerns of both plays include – Racism, Discrimination, Persecution, Lack of Respect, Identity, Belonging (or lack of), Discovery and the issues of Home.
An English teacher even attempts to help Paul by guiding his hand on the board, but Paul recedes his hand quickly not allowing the teacher to set a hand on him. This attitude continued on and is symbolized by “his shrug and his flippantly red carnation flower” (Cather 74). Even as Paul leaves the school he shows his respect by bowing. This
FIELD NOTES 4 Excerpt 1: . On the leftmost table closest to us, there was a group of 4. They were all men in their early 30s, who I understood to be coworkers. They all wore buttoned up shirts with rolled up sleeves. I overheard the guy in the blue shirt mocking one of his coworker sitting across from him: “Daniel here, he is never on time for anything, especially to the Monday meetings”.
One of the most important in this particular play is the acting. The actors are good at adapting from one role to the next and switching accessories quickly. The different use of British and other accents in a stereotypical but serious way. The director attempts to make the play successful by bringing everything to life and using the actors to do everything in a smooth and funny matter.
Paul and Luke’s belonging to self is examined throughout both the texts. Paul’s belonging is most clearly seen through his connection to music as it is what he identifies himself with. As Paul ponders the different styles of his parents he realizes that he is their “mulatto”, a musical metaphor for a combination of different parts. Paul’s struggle to belong to self is conveyed through Keller who uses symbolism to describe Paul’s arrogance in his musical ability “The thumb… is too strong. A rooster.
Upstage is back, downstage is front, right is left, left is right, out is up, break a leg but don't really, wings have nothing to do with birds, the catwalk doesn’t involve cats, and when the stage manager says move it means move. The theatre vocabulary is very confusing for the outside world, but for me it is my second language. More specifically, I have developed a passion for the technical elements of theatre over the years. The joy of being the “people in black” that can make amazing sets and produce incredible plays which goes unnoticed.. Although this discourse is much small yet complex it has helped me find out who I am but also in my academic skills through learning how to work in teams, solve problems independently but also how to be
Like most performances, “Kinky Boots” is highly educative and informative owing to the plot and storyline which have a different approach as opposed to most plays. As such, my choice to select “kinky Boots” as my performance of choice is influenced by the international acclaim the play has received from the time of its debut. Notably, the play has a variety of advantages owing to the level of experience of its writers, cast, and crew members. However, the show has managed to attract a large demographic because of its use of theatrics showcased in the performance. The response discusses my personal opinion of the play “Kinky Boots” which I attended in the Boston Opera House on the 11th of august.
The productions of this play were successful through stage design, lighting crewing, and acting. Those three aspects made the quality of the play stand out to me, as an audience member. The production of the set design of the play was a good effort. The set design for the play staging aims for the sweet spot between feeding adult nostalgia and satisfying a new generation of children.
On March 28th, I had the pleasure of attending the Broadway show called “The Play That Goes Wrong,” located at the Lycuem Theatre on 149 West 45th Street. On this particular Tuesday evening, I just had a vibe that something wrong was going to happen in this play – shockingly. I did believe this play will truly be memorable judging by the fun quirk of the show’s name. After watching the performance for about two hours, I can conclude that this play went beyond my expectation as its set disasters and characters amusingly caught the attention of me and the rest of the audience.
This analysis is in league to discuss the differing aspects of theatrical and dramatic formats or mediums, the enclosed essay shall be focusing upon three contrasting pieces. The piece placed under scrutiny for the usage of an audio format shall be well renowned performance of Orson Welles’ “The War of the Worlds” most prominently known for the nationwide hysteria it caused due to the revolutionary employment of live sound effects to instil a sense of conviction to the audience. A key component of audio based performances is the principal of the performers using descriptive text to convey the current circumstances, this being the most concise means to deliver the staging of the piece without any form of visual display, such commons methods
“Imagination no longer has a function”, says Emile Zola in his essay, ‘Naturalism in the Theatre’. Many of the ideas which Zola has discussed in this essay have been taken up by modern theatre, both in theory and practice. Modern theatre, for instance, is aware of the fact that analysis and not synthesis should be the basis for theatrical production. It is with this theory at the back of his mind that Bertolt Brecht has discussed theatre’s role as an educator only if the elements associated with spectacle are removed from theatre.
2015, 129). Each performer acquires roles which contain expected behaviours that are appropriate to the performance of that role (Willmott, 2018). When we perform our roles to other actors and to our audience, we view them as theatrical productions. Our performance displays
The selections “Act Without Words” and “Imagination Dead Imagine” written by Samuel Beckett and the short play “The Sandbox” written by Edward Albee illustrate the term ‘Theatre of Absurd’ as their selections or play develop. The term ‘Theatre of Absurd,’ is a form of drama that demonstrates the absurdity of human existence by illustrating repetitions, meaningless dialogue, and confusing situations that lack logical development. Although both Beckett and Albee share many common similarities in their works, they also share many differences in their own respective works. In both selections by Beckett and the short play by Albee are similar through the theme of death and the lack of character significance, but they differ through the perception