I’ll admit, when I first registered for this class, I felt inundated by just how passionate people were about the subject of theatre. “Yeah, okay, calm down y’all. I get it, but at the end of the day, they’re just a bunch of skits”, I’d think to myself as my peers proclaimed that theatre was necessary for our very survival. My understanding of theatre was quite rudimentary, and could not help but feel as though everyone was inflating theatre’s importance due to their own personal biases.
That was really until I began the readings, and found people like Chairman Adam Schiff and Secretary Hillary Clinton repeat much of the same sentiments. I’ll preface by saying that I’m a politics junkie, so right off the bat I knew that theatre’s window of appreciation extended far beyond metropolitan theatre kids that are a little too obsessive over Hamilton. And, in fact, looking back on it Speaker Nancy Pelosi is known for referencing musicals. So why would some of the most important people in our government see the value in theatre if it did not have any significant value?
This was when I began to look back at the first musical I ever saw in person. It was in Frederick, Maryland, and was a production of 1776, with much of its cast being played by actual local and state politicians. Here you had a member of Maryland’s House of Delegates hitting high notes, all the while dressed up as John Dickinson. It all felt so real and personal, as if they were playing a piece of themselves. They were able to manifest their identity as an American politician in the heated chambers of the Capital, and could project that before an audience that does not experience this. They were able to bring humanity to anyone from loyalists against the American Revolution and advocates for the prolonging of slavery. In standard forms of education, many of these legislators are often ignored, or at most chalked up as on the wrong side of history. But on the stage, they were run-of-the-mill civil servants concerned for their state’s economy, proud citizens of the British Empire, and representing the majority of American’s concerns over the possible downsides of secession. In fact, before I viewed this show, I had an overall negative view on Founding Father John Adams. I saw him as a tyrannical opportunist with little consideration for due process nor the consequences of his actions. Today, despite his faults, he remains my favorite Founding Father. Adams’ portrayal in 1776, as an astute man of his beliefs, strong convictions towards self-governance, and love for his country, shifted the way I look back at him, even though my former negative interpretation still remains a common one. Another example of theatre changing the way we see our history is, well, as previously mentioned, Hamilton. To say the least, it has made its impact, with the once infamous Aaron Burr depicted as a troubled leader, someone who we can all become like were we to be placed in a position of power.
Theatre is an ancient form of expression and story-telling, long before the age of film and video games. As such, its techniques laid the groundwork of entertainment over the course of human civilization. It brings a more intimate experience when compared to more technologically advanced forms of entertainment, which has the obvious downside of having a screen separate the simulation. This gives theatre more of a story-telling vibe that can not be replicated on other renditions of media.
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