Lesson #1 - Do not allow yourself to be frustrated by your lack of understanding. Every show this week, I've felt a small amount of frustration and anger at my inability to understand basic plot lines or jokes. There is nothing worse than sitting in a room full of people, listening to their laughter, and being completely lost. It felt as if I was the joke. It is very easy to fester that anger and ruin your night by just being angry. Do not simmer. Do not think too hard. (But don't zone out and not think at all!) Just enjoy.
Lesson # 2 - Having an open mind is key to your experience. Do not close yourself off (or even doze off). Just because something is different (Riese! Riese! or even Die (S)panische Fliege) there will always be something of value you can take away. Whether it comes to appreciating the immense control an actor may have over their body or the aesthetics. Throw away all previous constructs of theater that you've ever had. Again, just enjoy.
Lesson #3 - Curtain calls are long. Get used to it. Bring some lotion.
Lesson #4 - Pick up some German. Ditto.
-------
All in all, I have been exposed to different styles of theater that I doubt I could experience in the United States (like a book I would have never picked up on my own). What excites me the most is the energy I see on stage from certain actors. Even if I cannot understand a single word of what you are saying, I can feel your energy and emotions. This was a bit more difficult with the Threepenny Opera when everything was much more stylized; the show felt less focused on the acting and more focused on physical movement/gestures and delivery of the line.
Although each show, aesthetically, has blown my mind. The way Riese! Riese! utilized the depth of the room and projections along the walls. Threepenny Opera, because of the silhouettes, played tricks on my mind; there were moments when I thought I was looking at a 2D image, a picture, instead of live theater. Ostermeier's Hamlet. How do I even begin to describe it? No words. Just awe. And finally Die (S)panische Fliege, I enjoyed their use of the deep stage, the trampoline, and the insane optical illusion the jammed carpet created (#littlepeople).
It makes me frustrated to think that none of these wonderful things could be possible in the United States. Whether it be financial problems, or Union problems, I constantly think about the possibility. Right now, my instinct as a stage manager tells me: a solid N-O. But I hope that may change in the next two weeks.
In support of Lesson #1: During "The Spanish Fly" last night, it occurred to me for the first time how funny it is that the phenomenon you're describing (and which we have all been discussing a lot) also happens in reverse. There have been several instances where our little American group finds something enormously funny which makes the other audience members look at us either in disagreement or that yearning desire to be "in on" what WE are laughing at. So sometimes it's not language, it's cultural. And regardless, it has seemed from my seat that the actors up on stage have thus far greatly enjoyed our presence, we're they aware of it. All reactions are valid, all experiences are useful. I am proud of all of us for following what seems to be the German theatre manners of not leaving before the end of the show, of letting ourselves have any and all honest reactions to some crazy events. We are very present and extremely engaged, and these shows are rewarding us for that-- in other words, even if we aren't enjoying it, boy do we have a lot to talk about afterwards!!! Berlin theatre challenges and inspires in huge ways.
ReplyDelete