Twelfth Night, Mark Rylance, and other thoughts

I saw the production of Twelfth Night with Mark Rylance last week, and enjoyed it immensely. From the moment I entered the Belasco Theater, one of my favorites, the night was a success. The theater, which has a long history, being home to the Group Theater in the 30's, has been beautifully restored. Unfortunately, they are also allowing the audience to bring drinks into the theater. I guess it's a compromise with an audience that is more used to going to movies than theater. However, watching the actors dress and makeup, and Mr Rylance warm up, in particular, is wonderful theater. Fortunately, it continues throughout the play itself. Watching a wonderful actor warm up is a treat, and a lesson in concentration and how they use themselves. Mr Rylance is no exception. My only regret is that he isn't American, as I said that he was in my last blog. He was raised in the US, and his first exposure to theater is here. But, he is English. There is still something particular about his spirit that comes closer to what American acting at its best could be. Imagine if Marlon Brando, or Robert DeNiro had done the work that he has done: Had the dedication to acting that he has. What would they have done with some of Shakespeare's characters?

I want to make it clear that when I write about a play I've seen, it's not my intention to write a review. I could. I know what each artist's contribution to the whole is. But, this blog isn't just about what plays I've seen. So, I want it clear, as those of you who follow this blog know, that I use this blog to write about all kinds of subjects. Because, as Shakespeare said, "All the world's a stage..."

The night we went to the play was the day after the snowstorm, whose name I have already forgotten. There was so much talk about people staying home, because it was dangerous to be outside. that the talk made me check to see whether the show was on, or not. Honestly, while there is a need for caution, the panic created by all the warnings before the storm comes, means that even if the storm doesn't happen, it has already done a lot of damage. Grocery stores were emptied of products, as though it was the end of the world. I am not used to Americans behaving with such fear. It seems Un-American to me. We are a nation of immigrants. And, pioneers. Fear of life is not part of our history. Until now. I find it very sad. I, actually, like storms. I feel normal. For years, I have thought of my inner life as a micro weather system. When I was younger, I'd go jog in Central Park during a snowstorm. It was beautiful. I'd like to be like that now. I should get back in shape.

Several blogs back, I wrote about Waiting for Godot, and Beckett. And, said that Beckett was the most modern writer that theater has. You may wonder why? One has to read the plays to discover that. How can a character talk about a toothbrush, in so few words, and be talking about life? That happens in Happy Days. Beckett is very difficult to read. You have to read the stage directions, or you don't understand what he is doing. For me, reading Beckett is the most difficult of all playwrights. It is so essential, and so poetic. As all great playwrights are poets in disguise. Their words go from the superficial to the profound, reverberating through layers of reality. And, the more modern the playwright, the fewer words are needed. It is what we mean when we say, Modern Theater. For to me, theater is the art of the spoken word. Not to say the word well spoken, but spoken with profoundly simple, human, truth.

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Merry Christmas-Waiting for Godot and other wishes

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to everyone. If you are in New York and want to do something enjoyable during the holiday season, go see Waiting for Godot at the Cort Theater. It is considered by many to be Beckett's best, certainly most famous, play. We sat in the second row, and watching Ian McKellan living his character onstage is a treat. He and Patrick Stewart seem to have a real complicity between them, which makes the play work. It is one of the few productions of Beckett that didn't put me to sleep. Beckett is the greatest modern playwright the world has, in my opinion. And, being a great writer should mean that we love his plays. And, understand what he is saying. We do in this production, though, like every successful production of Beckett I've seen recently, they do it at the expense of his pauses. Like all productions, the pauses here are less than one breath, if at all. But, that said, the production is funny. We sat next to a couple whom I overheard saying that they had never been to anything except musical comedies. They were here because the girl loves Patrick Stewart from Star Trek. During intermission, they asked my wife what the play was about, as they heard her speaking French. And, obviously, French people must be intelligent and know about Beckett. She encouraged them to simply listen. They did, and enjoyed themselves, while we all were Waiting for Godot. The rest of the actors, Shuler Hensley as Pozzo, and Billy Crudup as Lucky, work hard, are very competent. But, they are not in the same league with Mr McKellen. In truth, there were moments when I thought that he and Mr Stewart should have changed roles, as he seemed so much more intelligent and thoughtful, and I think that the characters of Vladimir, played by Mr Stewart, and Estragon, played by Mr McKellen, are the opposite. But, it didn't stop me from enjoying their relationship, or the play. After all, I didn't go to the theater to see my production of the play. But, theirs. They seemed to warm up as they went along, and by the second act, they were flying along. From the beginning, the audience began to laugh, and I knew that they were reacting according to what review they had read. But, human beings, unfortunately, have lost their childlike ability to respond honestly and spontaneously to what they are experiencing. In this theater, like when I saw The Jacksonian, they sold drinks in the orchestra floor, and it was littered with playbills, and empty plastic bottles and paper cups by the end of the evening. I just don't like that. But, if you've been sitting around waiting for Godot, go see this production. It will make life interesting for awhile, and help you to feel that life is worth living.

On that thought, I have some Christmas wishes. As the United States enrolls in Affordable Health Care, I wish that the Government, including Congress and the President, will do something about making Health Care affordable. Like, regulating the prices of drugs. Years ago, my wife needed a prescription for eliminating toenail fungus. It cost $900.00 here. We bought it in Paris for 47€, about $62.00. And, aspiring should not cost $38.00 in a hospital. Nor should a forty-five minute physical therapy session cost $2,700.00. Etc. etc. And, the government is trying to negotiate trade agreements to force other countries to raise the prices of drugs, instead of lowering them, here. I guess the $500,000,000 yes, half a billion dollars spent on politicians by the drug lobby is working well.

Another wish, Congress will decide to limit the length of terms of office of its members. We have limited the Presidency to two terms. Why not limit Senators to two terms, and Congressmen to five or six?

Another wish, that the Internet will remain free, and that it will revolutionize cable television, and television, the way television revolutionized movies. And, movies revolutionized theater, along with the Kennedy's, whose policies of government support for non-profit theater outside of New York City revolutionized the Theater. Maybe, not all for the better. But, it certainly gave us more choices.

I realize that my blog's are about many subjects. And, I am aware that is not always a good thing. Because, people may not be able to say what my blog's are about, in a simple and clear way, so that people know how to think about my blog. Well, just think about it as being about life. After all, isn't that what art is, the artist's reflection and expression of his or her's perception of life?

Again, Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays. And, please, if you like my blogs, turn other people on to them. And, subscribe, here.

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