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Re: RAT RE: Bleak Outlook on Theater
I hesitated getting into this discussion because of how deep the issue
really is. But....
I agree with a lot of what Cat says. I believe that the quality of small
theater is the key to winning audiences. We can not depend on our 'message',
our 'politics' or our 'art' to win us the loyalty of those outside of our
own small circle of friends. Every time an audience member walks away
disappointed in a performance there is one more reason for them to sit home
next time and watch Brady Bunch reruns. I hate to waste my time and I've
seen too many performances that have been short shrifted by those involved
leaving me complaining and threatening never to come back. I usually come
back because I am in the same game (theater) but the audience has not that
reason. Those people could be lost for a long time... or forever.
Let's not preach to the choir. Let's reach out to community and make a
difference for people. I say that that is what they really want. They come
to our performances to be move, transformed... otherwise, why bother.
Dave
----- Original Message -----
From: "Cat Hebert" <virtualdrama@juno.com>
To: <rat-list@whirl-i-gig.com>
Sent: Wednesday, May 09, 2001 9:55 AM
Subject: Re: RAT RE: Bleak Outlook on Theater
> John,
>
> The audiences were lost a long time ago. And that includes people who
> primarily work on the stage. Stage performances are just too hit and miss
> for audiences who have learned, through massive exposure to TV and film,
> to be extremely critical of performances and staging. So I think it
> depends a lot on the quality of the theater performances people are
> exposed to -- or how theater fits into the social life of their
> community. For example, the local community theater may get substantial
> turnouts if at least a couple of the actors meet TV standards. People are
> willing to forgive a lot for someone who runs the local bank or operates
> the lawn business. What they aren't willing to forgive is "professionals"
> who aren't (in their estimation) particularly good actors, or productions
> that are poorly conceived / selected / rehearsed or flat out boring.
> Audiences don't have high tolerance for that, and once word-of-mouth gets
> out that such and such a company doesn't have a high standard, they can
> only get friends, family and potential cast/crew to come to performances.
>
> On the performer / production company side I find a lot of
> arrogance/lack-of-self-evaluation that doesn't help the whole equation.
> "I'm doing new work. You should pay attention to me." "We have toured the
> U.S. with our goatcheese musical. That should impress you." "My new play
> tells you how to react politically. You have an obligation to listen to
> me." "Everyone in Tribeca loves our crossdressing version of Lear. You
> [dolts] in Kansas City really must get more current by coming to sit on
> the floor for two hours and watch us lip-sync."
>
> Git ma drift, pardner?
>
> Cheers,
> Cat Hebert
>
>
>
> > on my bad days, it seems to me that theater is being kept together by
> > actors
> > and others interested in the art and craft of stage performance, and
> > that
> > the audiences have been lost to film and electronic performance
> > media....
> >
> > john angell grant
> >
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: owner-rat-list@whirl-i-gig.com
> > [mailto:owner-rat-list@whirl-i-gig.com]On Behalf Of Cat Hebert
> > Sent: Tuesday, May 08, 2001 7:01 AM
> > To: rat-list@whirl-i-gig.com
> > Subject: Bleak Outlook on Theater (wasRAT Marx in Soho (in LA)
> >
> >
> > Greg Romero wrote:
> > > I'm just glad I don't have such a bleak outlook
> > > on things. I'm over here trying to make a
> > > difference, however small that might be.
> >
> > Right. I just wanted to lay out my view of the way theater has
> > tended to
> > function in the U.S. I left out another major factor, of course,
> > and
> > that is that the large drama publishers have become the wholesale
> > distributors of play products that are selected, for the most part,
> > on
> > the basis of productions in major cities and at major theater
> > festivals.
> >
> > I think it's important for people to accept that because of the
> > prevailing market forces, the work they want/need to do may only
> > reach a
> > niche audience. That's one reason I'm so interested in
> > Internet-based
> > live performance -- since even a small niche can have quite
> > sizeable
> > numbers when you magnify it internationally.
> >
> > My belief is that every single person on the planet has some unique
> > higher-functioning talent to offer and some story to tell, and it's
> > a
> > test of our success as a species to see just how many people get to
> > fulfill that talent and to tell that story.
> >
> > Cheers,
> > Cat Hebert
> >
> >
> >
> >
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