Friday, 8 October 2004 02:09 pm
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deckardcanineI adjusted my Interests list again. I decided not to include "college" now that I've graduated. It's basically become just another past level of school for me. (Can't say I ever was excited about school.) This change was prompted by a more important one: adding "theater" to the list. After all, I didn't volunteer to become an usher just so I could show people around.
I had considered writing here before about when I attended The Lion King on broadway during the days of the last U.S. Open, but somehow I didn't feel like it. Now, let me say that it appeals more freshly than the movie. I had seen the movie through several times, and while the animation quality impresses to this day, it doesn't feel as artistic as the live production. As you may know, realism is not a high priority. Creatures and landscapes are clearly (even to children) dressed-up humans, mobiles, shadow puppets, paper mache, or marionettes with the puppeteers in plain sight, but they look like fun and thus win applause. The lions carry machetes when ready for action, and Scar loses his staff at a bad moment. Zazu (presenting more humor for kids or adults than Rowan Atkinson had) even makes fun of his division between a hornbill and an oddly dressed man. The change of medium also has an impact on poignancy: Mufasa's fall touched me just as much as it did 10 years ago. Script changes are mostly for the better -- I have to wonder how many dances Timon has done -- tho not all of the new songs are worth remembering, and certain additions make us uneasy about what the kids might pick up, e.g., "You are bucked up, royally." Many changes, not the least of which pertain to the now-female baboon Rafiki, seem to make it all more faithful to Sub-Saharan (West?) African tradition, abetted in part by the more obvious role of dark-skinned actors. We all left wanting to take home a prop.
I have signed up for a season ushering at the Arena Stage in D.C., one of the best theaters I know -- I've had more consistent fun there than at Broadway shows. The round stage is especially interesting, demanding that the players maintain interest from 360 degrees. Most recently, I, my parents, and a friend of ours went to see a play that I and the friend had read but never seen: M. Butterfly. I had my doubts of how much could be gained from viewing, especially against a minimalist backdrop, but it turned out to clarify many, many crucial effects that we both failed to pick up on in reading. We'd actually forgotten about Renee, whose brief time on stage brought enough laughs for applause upon exit -- tho nobody got as much as Song Liling in the end. My mom made a point to remember the music to play on the piano at home as well. What I had wondered from the start was whether the stage would dare present the nude scene with nothing to obscure the whatevers. It did, to flawless effect. I may come across as a prude much of the time, but I'm glad when a theater that has usually put on PG plays goes for something deeper and more biting. That's also why I'm glad that the "Angels in America" miniseries, for all its unfavorable elements, won an Emmy this year.
I had considered writing here before about when I attended The Lion King on broadway during the days of the last U.S. Open, but somehow I didn't feel like it. Now, let me say that it appeals more freshly than the movie. I had seen the movie through several times, and while the animation quality impresses to this day, it doesn't feel as artistic as the live production. As you may know, realism is not a high priority. Creatures and landscapes are clearly (even to children) dressed-up humans, mobiles, shadow puppets, paper mache, or marionettes with the puppeteers in plain sight, but they look like fun and thus win applause. The lions carry machetes when ready for action, and Scar loses his staff at a bad moment. Zazu (presenting more humor for kids or adults than Rowan Atkinson had) even makes fun of his division between a hornbill and an oddly dressed man. The change of medium also has an impact on poignancy: Mufasa's fall touched me just as much as it did 10 years ago. Script changes are mostly for the better -- I have to wonder how many dances Timon has done -- tho not all of the new songs are worth remembering, and certain additions make us uneasy about what the kids might pick up, e.g., "You are bucked up, royally." Many changes, not the least of which pertain to the now-female baboon Rafiki, seem to make it all more faithful to Sub-Saharan (West?) African tradition, abetted in part by the more obvious role of dark-skinned actors. We all left wanting to take home a prop.
I have signed up for a season ushering at the Arena Stage in D.C., one of the best theaters I know -- I've had more consistent fun there than at Broadway shows. The round stage is especially interesting, demanding that the players maintain interest from 360 degrees. Most recently, I, my parents, and a friend of ours went to see a play that I and the friend had read but never seen: M. Butterfly. I had my doubts of how much could be gained from viewing, especially against a minimalist backdrop, but it turned out to clarify many, many crucial effects that we both failed to pick up on in reading. We'd actually forgotten about Renee, whose brief time on stage brought enough laughs for applause upon exit -- tho nobody got as much as Song Liling in the end. My mom made a point to remember the music to play on the piano at home as well. What I had wondered from the start was whether the stage would dare present the nude scene with nothing to obscure the whatevers. It did, to flawless effect. I may come across as a prude much of the time, but I'm glad when a theater that has usually put on PG plays goes for something deeper and more biting. That's also why I'm glad that the "Angels in America" miniseries, for all its unfavorable elements, won an Emmy this year.
