Welcome to our blog. This is a way for us to further the conversations we begin in class...to dig deeper when we have the time, when we think of something we forgot to say, when we come up with a brilliant diatribe. I assume you've used blogs or these kinds of forums before, that you'll be respectful of each other and me...and that you'll write as though the world is watching, because hey, maybe someday it will be.
And yes, spelling and punctuation matter.
ANYWAY...Introductions.
Please tell the rest of us (1) two plays you enjoy (2) two plays or productions you've see that you don't love, or think are over-rated (3) one "hope" you have for the class and (4) your favorite dessert. I'll go first.
1) I love "Angels in America" for all sorts of reasons...it's smart, it's ambitious, the scenes are great for actors, it says so much about America and is both heartbreaking and funny. I also love a play called "The Method Gun," by the Rude Mechanicals of Austin, Texas. The show's going to the Humana Festival this year; it's a hugely ambitious, totally crazy adaptation of/response to "A Streetcar Named Desire"...only it's also not that at all. It's perplexing and beautiful and I feel like I need to read it twenty more times to fully understand it.
2) Okay, I admit it, I walked out of the Jude Law "Hamlet." I adore the play, heck, I've been in the play, but the production struck me as stilted, unimaginative, unambitious, and flat-out working against the text in several places...and not in a good way. I also think Sarah Ruhl's "Clean House" is over-rated; she has some beautiful stage directions, but the play, overall, feels "played out" to me. But if you loved either of the above, that's fine -- it'll give us something fun to argue about.
3) I hope that some of you (all of you) write some plays you're really proud of, and come out feeling like you want to write more.
4) My favorite dessert is apple crisp...even though I talk about chocolate all the time. Chocolate's just more portable.
1. I really love Waiting for Godot-- it has a playful, thought-provoking quality to it that really entices me. Although the language is for the most part absurd, as well as the setting and characters, to me it seems to allow Beckett to convey the emotions of the characters as well as his underlying themes in a way that I find very provocative. Another play I like is The Importance of Being Earnest-- it's a life-long favorite of mine. Oscar Wilde's use of language and word-play, as well as the farce involved in the play, has always interested me. I'd like to experiment with the writing style of both Beckett and Wilde.
ReplyDelete2. I used to go to this art camp that had a very active acting program. The counselers were often aspiring playwrights. One year, a woman wrote an adaption of Hamlet called "Harriet." Attendence was required unfortunately, so I painfully sat watching a bimbo named Harriet wander through a story so bizarrely mishapen and torn from the original piece. The character Harriet wore a tiny pink tank top and pig tails.
3. I hope to gain a greater understanding of the entricacies of writing plays in addition to a final scene/play that I can be proud of.
4. I think apple crisps are very delicious, but I'd probably have to go with ice box cake. I have it once a year on Thanksgiving.
1) "The Importance of Being Earnest" is probably one of the most charming, hilarious plays I've ever read. Somehow, In a few short pages, Oscar Wilde captured the hypocricy, frillyness, and sillyness of the aristocratci society of London in the 19th century. He forever has my adoration. Also, I know everyone dislikes Wicked, thinks it's simple, annoying, and a sad excuse as a representation of the intricate and exquisite book. I agree with them. However. I am a music person, and as such focus very much on the music in musicals more than the play itself. So I'm not ashamed to say that songs like Defying Gravity and As Long As You're Mine simply brought me to tears solely from the powerful tenderness of them. Because of this, I have forgiven them.
ReplyDelete2) Romeo and Juliet is one of the most over-done, over-rated plays I have ever encountered. Mayhap, if it had been left alone as much as Shakespeare's other plays and not wrenched every which way by clamoring directors, producers, playwriters, and actors alike, I might still like it. As it is, I'm sick and tired of our trajic "star-crossed lovers" and could go for a very long time without coming into contact with them and be perfectly happy. Also...Altar Boys was not a little silly. And annoying. And just plain boring. No offense, Natalie.
3) Last semester I learned how to make an *effective* short story, what elements where necessary, how to bring characters and conflicts to life, all that jazz. Playwriting is similar, and yet entirely different. I'm looking forward this semester to learning how to make an effective play.
4)...damn, that's a hard one. So I'll go with all of these: vanilla ice cream with raspberry sauce, soufle from Capsouto Freres, or the chocolate mousse my mom's friend's son used to make when he had his own restaurant.
Also, as you can tell, I talk way to bloody much
1. I read "Our Town" several years ago and I just remember loving it. I've picked it up a few times since then to kind of page through it, but I haven't gotten a chance to fully read it again so I can't exactly say what it is about the play that speaks to me. I do remember feeling some sort of profound connection at the end, specifically, as though it was something I wanted to carry with me through the rest of my life. I also really love "Fiddler on the Roof," in part because of the music, which is really catchy, and heartfelt, and funny, but also because of the sense of community you get from watching it and being a part of the cast. I think it really builds a family right in front of your eyes.
ReplyDelete2. A few weeks ago I saw "South Pacific" and didn't love it at all. Maybe it was too built-up? People have always told me great things about it and it just fell short of my expectations. I found it kind of dragging and, though there were obviously good moments, stuck in its old-fashioned-ness. Last year I saw "Top Girls," and though I liked it by the end of the play, I found the first act to be weirdly disconnected from the rest of the show. I also came away feeling like I didn't understand it, which, rather than making me think, just made me feel frustrated.
3. Coming from a personal essay class, I'm now used to writing about myself--things that have happened to me, things that I think about. So right now, I feel kind of scared about using my imagination. I want to feel more comfortable making up characters and story-lines by the end of this semester. I'd also like to try to find a way to incorporate my own life into my scripts.
4. Cherry pie. And Girlscout cookies!
1. I am a real admirer of the play August: Osage County. In fact you have probably heard me talking about it if you have been around me enough. I saw the play twice on Broadway and it was a fantastic 3 and a half hours. I would go see that show 100 times if I could, but sadly it closed. I love the play so much that one of my monologues for college is from it! (I think you knew that Jenny). I agree with Chandler that the music in Fiddler on the Roof is very moving and touched me a lot when I was in it; however right now my favorite play that I have been in would have to be The Miracle Worker. I have never played a character who had so much to offer to everyone but couldn't express herself at all. It was a huge challenge, and the most fun I have ever had working on a show.
ReplyDelete2. I could go on about how much I hated this season's production of West Side Story for hours and hours. West Side Story is an amazing musical that was written by great people and directed/choreographed by a genius. However, Jerome Robbins is rolling over in his grave right now because of this production. All the Jets looked like little gay men prancing around the stage in Gap Clothing--These kids are supposed to be Juvenile Delinquents! Not flamboyant gay boys. I have nothing against gay guys but that isn't the play. Maria couldn't act at all. She had a beautiful voice but I didn't feel for her character. Tony and Maria didn't have any chemistry, and Tony didn't seem excited at all when he met Maria for the first time (singing "Maria" standing in one position). Arthur Laurents shouldn't direct, he is too old. My opinions are really strong about that play, I'm sorry if I offend anyone. I'm also not a fan of Merchant of Venice. I find it to be anti-Semitic and I don't think the fifth act needs to be in the play at all. It is not a Shakespeare that I enjoy.
3. I hope that during this class I can learn something new everyday about the theater. I can't wait to start writing plays about things that are important to me. I like that this class is really about whatever we want to write, pretty much.
4. My favorite dessert would have to be pumpkin pie. It doesn't have to be Thanksgiving. I will always eat a pumpkin pie.
1) I really enjoyed August: Osage County, despite its length. There were so many twists that shocked me, kept me on the edge of my seat, and helped me forget that I had been sitting in the same chair for three and a half hours. I also really enjoyed the musical In the Heights. The neighborhood the show was set in reminded me so much of the neighborhood I lived in with my parents when I was little—despite it being in a completely different location than Washington Heights. The fact that the music was nicely written and amazingly performed just added to how great the show was overall.
ReplyDelete2) I saw Waiting for Godot on Broadway with a friend last year. While I’m definitely glad I had the chance to see Nathan Lane and John Goodman perform live, I wasn’t very crazy about the play. I was kind of bored by the story and didn’t find the humor extremely funny. Still, it was a good experience. A show I think is very overrated is the musical Hair. I know that as an avid theatergoer, I should try to appreciate all types of storytelling, but I’m sorry; I just don’t like shows without a plot. The show consisted mostly of songs trying to “send a message to the audience,” but instead of feeling profoundly affected by the music, I found myself bored and counting how many songs were left.
3) I would really just like to improve my creative writing. Last semester I was in a class where I wrote a mixture of analytical and reflective writing pieces, so I haven’t had the chance to do creative writing in a long time. I’m excited and nervous at the same time to do some expressive writing.
4) Brooklyn Blackout Cake. It’s sometimes too much, but I still love it.
1. One play that I really liked was Our Town. The production that I saw was really unique. It was as if the audience played a role in the show. The stage was set up in a way where the audience sat entirely around the set (like a semi-circle), and some rows were even used as part of the set. There was a little audience interaction, but not enough to make me cringe in my seat, hoping I wouldn't be called. There was also a narrator which was interesting and added to the experience of the show. The story got more and more interesting throughout and I really liked how it was a simple yet different view of life itself. By the end, like Chandler said, I remember it really having an affect on me.
ReplyDeleteI also really loved August: Osage County. The play kept me on the edge of my seat the entire time. Every few minutes there would be a new, unexpected surprise which kept the audience interested and made the very long play fly by. I loved the plot and how it was a view into a family's dysfunctional life, and dealt with a variety of issues a crazy family might face. Because of the many twists and turns (and the amazing set), I was in awe throughout the whole show.
2. If I had to pick a play that didn't catch my interest very much, it would have to be Waiting for Godot. I know it is a classic that many people love, but for some reason I couldn't get into the story. I don't know if it was because I lost interest after the first fifteen minutes and nothing happened to wake me up, or maybe I just couldn't connect to what was going on. Whatever the reason, I wasn't enjoying my time and was honestly just sitting and waiting for something to happen and I was disappointed.
Another play that I saw that I didn't enjoy was a show called Breathe. This show was part of the Fringe Festival, and it was autobiographical. The entire play had a narrator - who was the woman the play was based on - coming in and out of the scenes, sometimes playing herself, and sometimes popping in to explain what was going on. It was very all over the place, not interesting, and her lack of acting experience really affected the show. It also didn't help that everyone I went with was asleep by the end.
3. I really want to be able to write plays that are completely fictional and others that are somehow related to my life. I have always enjoyed creative writing, but I haven't done it in a really long time - for the past year I've been writing almost all analytical essays. I am both excited and nervous to start writing plays and I hope by the end I will have some work that I am proud of!
4. I love warm chocolate cake with vanilla ice cream! I also really like apple pie.
1) Last year in Humanities we read No Exit by Sartre. I was struck by how effectively the play was set up to make a point, one that benefited from being applied to his characters. I also felt its brevity made it appropriately proportioned for what Sartre was trying to say.
ReplyDeleteI say Rocky Horror on Broadway in 2001, which I remember enjoying quite a lot, but I was already a fan of the film, and I was about 9.
2) I saw Wicked recently because my sister got discounted tickets through her university. It was wretched. Music was bad, characters were grating. Who can explain its longevity to me?
...and I can't think of a second one. Either I am largely accepting of what I see or I need to get out more.
3) I hope that, even if I don't produce something that I am fully proud of, I can familiarize myself enough with the medium that I will be able to use it as a basis for some of my writing in the future.
4) Apple pieeeeeeeeeeeeeee
1) I'd say that my current two favorite plays are Sartre's No Exit and Ibsen's Hedda Gabler. I consider them to be pretty short, and I appreciate how well both playwrights can put such thought-provoking story lines into so few words. I love the wit and cleverness of No Exit and how completely maniacal it is and how maniacal it makes you feel about yourself and others. Each character has extremely long monologues filled with intense imagery...I think I actually cried at one point reading one of their stories of their life on earth because of how real Sarte made them appear--they repeated words and stuttered and their personalities were so clear. I finished Hedda Gabler completely in love with Hedda herself, even though most of the other people who read it hated her. I love being able to form a relationship with the people I read about and in Hedda Gabler especially I felt like I knew these people in and out and that I could feel exactly what they were feeling. I wondered about their lives and interactions outside of the script.
ReplyDelete2) I saw a play called "Life x3" a couple of years ago--it was hyped up because Helen Hunt and John Turturro were in it, but I was completely bored, despite their presence. The stage was in the center of the room with the audience surrounding. It felt like a soap opera because most scenes were of a married couple fighting or at dinner parties, and I suppose it's not a good sign that I can't remember what the plot was. I could tell that the actors were better suited for movies because I didn't find Helen Hunt's performance too realistic; it seemed like she was over acting to compensate for the fact that she couldn't do scenes over.
I can't think of another play that I didn't like--either I'm easily impressed or I haven't seen enough plays. I did see Glengarry Glen Ross when I was younger and couldn't appreciate it because I didn't really understand what was going on, but it's a family favorite (my dad has quotes from it tacked up all over his office) so I hope to see it again.
3) I've always loved creative writing, but the last time I wrote something fictional was when I was in sixth grade. I hope to bring as much reality and emotion into my fictional pieces as I do with nonfiction and I hope that others will be able to build relationships with my characters.
4) Bananas foster cake (the kind with the icing not the melty kind). Or Banana ice cream/pumpkin pie ice cream. Yuuuuuuum.
The Hugo/Kayla same reason for not having a second least favorite play was a complete coincidence- I just saw his now...weird!
ReplyDeleteOkay
ReplyDelete1. Machines,Machines,Machines,Machines,Machines,Machines made by Pig Iorn Theater Company and the Civilians, it's an absurd play with contraptions that make everything work, it's hilarious and worth seeing the re-run of, it was last at Here Arts Center. Also, Straight-Up Vampire, a story about vampires in colonial PA set to the music of Paula Abdul, which will be at Joe's Pub on the 9th and 10th of February an which premired at Ars Nova. It is written by my favorite coke-head playwrite Nick Jones.
2. Versus, which was part of the Under the Radar Festival, was an absurd play in Polish with poorly timed supertitles and half-decent choreography. Or The Devil You Know a puppet play by Ping Chong, whose work is normally stunning with really fantastic puppets and dark stories and even the Times gave it a great review, which was confusing as it was a boring moral lesson, and not a work of genius.
3.I want to write something crazy. Something like Checkov Lizard Brain or something with really weird stage directions.
4. ummmm......I eat WAY too much dessert but right now I'd have to say strawberry shortcake
My two favorite plays are probably Mamma Mia and a compilation parody of several Shakespeare plays which I forget the name of but saw at Boscobell. One play that I do not like is Wicked, and one that I think is way over-rated is Jersey Boys. One thing that I hope will happen in this class is that I write a good play that will somewhat represent me as a person and my personal internal struggles. My favorite dessert is defiantly chocolate mousse
ReplyDeleteMy favorite plays are Twelfth Night and Fiddler on the Roof. One play I did not enjoy was Hamlet because I was too young to understand what was going on. One thing i want to get from this course is to be able to write creatively through plays instead of the conventional essay. My favorite dessert is sugar cookies.
ReplyDelete1) Admittedly, the frequency of my play attendance, or reading for that matter, may leave something to be desired by those more well acquainted with the medium, not to say that there haven't been a few that I've enjoyed. The Importance of Being Earnest last year in Comedy was easily my favorite though. In particular, the numerous movie versions of it that we watched really made me realize how much i enjoyed the play. A few years ago i also enjoyed Monty Python's Spamalot, it was probably among the first plays I remember seeing.
ReplyDelete2)My mom fooled me into watching Phantom of the Opera at one point, it was thoroughly unpleasant. Secondly I guess just because it is fresh in my memory, I was quite bored by the flamenco performance (the very one mentioned in Vicky's manifesto) I saw with my spanish class last thursday, although it seems likely that this boredom was due not so much to the quality of the performance, as much as the fact that it was not necessarily "my thing."
3)I suppose I share Ben's hope, in that I look forward to being able to write something other than the mostly analytical essays of my past English classes.
4)On to the important question, I myself am actually the creator of the superior dessert foodstuff, namely Swedish car-shaped marshmellow-type candies named Bilar, conveniently dispersed in ice cream. (They're crunchy but then chewy, it's delightful)
(1) Two plays (or musicals) that have really stuck with me are The Understudy and Les Miserables. I definitely like these plays for different reasons; the first is in a very modern setting, and the second is more historical. Also, The Understudy is very satirical and Les Miserables is more serious. The greatest commonality between the two plays is that they are both extremely believable. I didn't realize until my first semester short story class how important it is to take a reader or viewer on a journey that seems feasible.
ReplyDelete(2) I think that the Merchant of Venice is extremely overrated. I feel terrible saying that because it is Shakespeare, and perhaps I will wallow in my own guilt after I post this, but I don't think the play had what all of his other plays have. The ending was felt like an episode of Seinfeld.
It's hard for me to think of another play that I think is overrated because I think a big part of a play's success is about the specific production. I've seen Macbeth in about three different ways, and I only loved one of them. Also, I think it's easiest to judge if a play is overrated or not if you read the raw script. By just reading the script, a person can imagine the play at its best, or its worst, and form an opinion that isn't skewed. Unfortunately, except for Shakespeare, we really haven't read that many plays in English classes. It is too hard for me to choose a play that I've seen that I thought was overrated.
(3) Like Jenny, I really hope that I am proud of something I write. I signed up for two English electives this year that revolve around creative writing, largely because I wanted to make myself do something I don't have a lot of experience with. I've only ever been proud of analytical essays that I've written, and I find that to be very sad. :(
(4) FUDGY-OAT SQUARES. dark chocolate fudge, over a unique, moist but crispy oaty thing, and then a little bit more of that part sprinkled on top of the fudge. They are so delicious.
Introduction
ReplyDelete1) My two favorite plays are Equus and Hamlet. I had sort of opposite experiences with them: I couldn’t put Equus down, but couldn’t get through the movie version, so I really want to see it performed. I’ve always been interested in psychology so reading about a psychologist’s self-discovery through these bizarre events was really fascinating. I thought Hamlet was alright when I read it, but when my English class went to see a production last year, I was obsessed with it. The performance of a Shakespeare play really made me realize why his writing is great, because I had never really understood before. The lead actor (Christian Camargo, whom I now stalk) spoke in such a way that I understood every line of Shakespeare’s language, and believed it. There was also some really impressive stage fighting, including actors being thrown across the room.
2) I haven’t really seen any horrible plays, but production-wise I’d say Hairspray. I also hated Moulin Rouge, I turned it off. I don’t really like musicals in general. Occasionally I’ll be entertained, but for the most part I don’t like them because they’re so exaggerated. The combination of exaggerated emotions and period jargon in Hairspray just made it way too cheesy, and even though I understand that it’s supposed to be like that I just don’t
3) I just hope I can write more than two minutes of good dialogue! I’m so used to writing personal essays that it’s going to be a huge challenge for me to figure out how to convey feelings only through words, but I hope I can do that successfully.
4) Red velvet cake. Or white chocolate. Or just icing, in a tub.
PS. I think John’s referring to The Reduced Shakespeare Company, whose production I have on DVD and would highly recommend, it’s hilarious.