So here's the deal: I read this play in middle school, probably around seventh grade, and I fell in love with it. I think it was maybe the first play that I ever read on my own and definitely the first play that had an impact on me (via reading rather than watching). I've never been able to see a production of it (though I've always wanted BC to put it on) and so when I heard that it was playing off-Broadway I was so excited to see it.
Many people have already written about this production on the blog, so bear with me; I'm going to at least attempt to say something that hasn't been said.
First of all, I just want to say that I really loved Sophie's interpretation of what the addition of props/scenery/traditional costumes meant for the overall message of the play. Because I had read that before I saw this, it kind of helped guide my own perception of the play, which I thought was cool. So thanks :)
Anyway, this script in and of itself is very unique, as far as I'm concerned. Although I agree with Hugo that the plot is sort of mundane and run-of-the-mill, I think that the way that Wilder handles the cycle of life and the rhythm of the everyday is really remarkable. I love the character of the Stage Manager. His perspective on everyday life is refreshing: even though he occasionally makes ordinary things "meaningful," he also lets many things stand on their own. The women are making breakfast. Howie is delivering milk. The choir is rehearsing at church. These are regular events and nothing more. This view, this character, is all Thornton Wilder's creation, and when I read the show I appreciated his matter-of-fact tone and lack of hidden motives. I like that Wilder lays everything out on the table: the geographical facts about the town, yes, but also the purpose of the play. Through the Stage Manager's words we discover that Wilder wants the show to last for thousands of years, to represent how the plain people lived. I was happy, too, to see the portrayal of the Stage Manager in this production. He carried the words well and was well-balanced: he seemed neither too nosy nor too uninvolved with his commentary.
I honestly liked almost everything about this production, and almost everything about the script as well. The last thing that I wanted to discuss about this production was the amount of downtime that some of the actors had while ON stage. The last scene of the play demanded that at least seven cast members sit silently and still on stage for at least twenty minutes. This isn't criticism or praise, just an observation. It was just something that really stuck out to me as impressive. I also think that the set-up of the theater (the audience was sort of integrated with the actors) was conducive to me paying attention to this downtime during the last scene. This final part of the play takes place in a graveyard, and with the actors sitting all around me, I felt as though I too had to sit as quietly and still as they were. I felt as if I, too, were a gravestone in the cemetery.
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