Isn't theatre a slice of life onstage? A piece of reality shown to an audience so that they look at it and think of their own lives. Often the drama is created by some crazy-intense situation that we would never find ourselves in, but there are still glimmers of familiarity that we cling to, relate to, and that's what moves us. We can see part of ourselves onstage.
Well what if what's portrayed is just daily life? Something we can relate to fully because it is us we're blatantly seeing?
I first read Thornton Wilder's Our Town seven years ago. A theatre company was getting ready to put it up, but for one reason or another, it never played. I still read the script though, in anticipation. I just remember being struck hard. I cried as I read the last act. It was just real, and it turns our reality is magical.
For those of you who haven't read it, it's divided into three acts. The first is called "Daily Life," the second "Love and Marriage," and the last is "Death." It follows two families who live in the same small town, and the few characters around them who fill out their lives. And it's just... ordinary. Nothing special happens in this small town; the play doesn't show what happens when, say, a serial killer arrives and turns everyone's lives upside down. The kids go to school, the adults go to work, and at the end of the day, they go to bed with the moon shining through their window.
It's all captivating to watch. It's like watching humans in a zoo. "A day in the life of..." until life is over. The third act takes place in a cemetery, where some of the characters we met are now sitting in their chairs, representing their own tombstones. They're waiting to welcome someone new to the cemetery. When she arrives, she wants to cling to life for a little longer despite her dead neighbors warning her that it will just cause her pain. She goes back to her 12th birthday, but finds that it's actually nothing special. Her parents are so busy fussing in life that they don't even look at her; they don't realize how precious this everyday moment is.
And that's the lesson of Our Town; the living don't appreciate life, but the dead do.
I finally got to see the script brought to life at the Almeida Theatre, and the message was brought full front. I got it. I cried in every act at the beauty of life. It was perfect. I saw that town, in great part because the Stage Manager, as is written, did an incredible job of painting the scene. And I had a great seat; front row, front corner, and the first row was pulled forward a little so that the actors could walk in and around us. I was in the action! I was in Grover's Corner.
I couldn't shake how much that play meant to me. It showed me what my philosophy of life is: seize the day. Very original, I know. But more than that, I want to live my life appreciating everything I have. It's not about money or being famous, it's about following passion and keeping family close. At the end of the day, you can only take your memories with you. It's more worth my time to stop and smell a rose than to put in a 14 hour work day at a job that I hate so I have more money than I need.
The play doesn't disguise that this is easier said than done. In fact, it says explicitly that none of us do this. We don't appreciate life itself. But as you watch it, you just want to get out of your seat and go start living. After I saw it, my friend and I went out for dinner and just talked about everything we felt while watching the play, and I don't think I'll ever forget that moment. It wasn't the substance of our conversation, but just that we were taking time out of life to enjoy a meal and a glass of wine. Those are the moments that I want to hang onto: the simple things in life.
Our Town was this beautiful reminder of what I want to take to my grave. I've had this play in my heart ever since I first read the script, and this production was just so beautiful that I know the images it created for me will join that space. It achieved what theatre is meant to do at its best. It made me look at my life and really think of what I want out of it.
Please read this play and learn from it. It's theatre that can change your life.
Well what if what's portrayed is just daily life? Something we can relate to fully because it is us we're blatantly seeing?
I first read Thornton Wilder's Our Town seven years ago. A theatre company was getting ready to put it up, but for one reason or another, it never played. I still read the script though, in anticipation. I just remember being struck hard. I cried as I read the last act. It was just real, and it turns our reality is magical.
For those of you who haven't read it, it's divided into three acts. The first is called "Daily Life," the second "Love and Marriage," and the last is "Death." It follows two families who live in the same small town, and the few characters around them who fill out their lives. And it's just... ordinary. Nothing special happens in this small town; the play doesn't show what happens when, say, a serial killer arrives and turns everyone's lives upside down. The kids go to school, the adults go to work, and at the end of the day, they go to bed with the moon shining through their window.
It's all captivating to watch. It's like watching humans in a zoo. "A day in the life of..." until life is over. The third act takes place in a cemetery, where some of the characters we met are now sitting in their chairs, representing their own tombstones. They're waiting to welcome someone new to the cemetery. When she arrives, she wants to cling to life for a little longer despite her dead neighbors warning her that it will just cause her pain. She goes back to her 12th birthday, but finds that it's actually nothing special. Her parents are so busy fussing in life that they don't even look at her; they don't realize how precious this everyday moment is.
And that's the lesson of Our Town; the living don't appreciate life, but the dead do.
I finally got to see the script brought to life at the Almeida Theatre, and the message was brought full front. I got it. I cried in every act at the beauty of life. It was perfect. I saw that town, in great part because the Stage Manager, as is written, did an incredible job of painting the scene. And I had a great seat; front row, front corner, and the first row was pulled forward a little so that the actors could walk in and around us. I was in the action! I was in Grover's Corner.
I couldn't shake how much that play meant to me. It showed me what my philosophy of life is: seize the day. Very original, I know. But more than that, I want to live my life appreciating everything I have. It's not about money or being famous, it's about following passion and keeping family close. At the end of the day, you can only take your memories with you. It's more worth my time to stop and smell a rose than to put in a 14 hour work day at a job that I hate so I have more money than I need.
The play doesn't disguise that this is easier said than done. In fact, it says explicitly that none of us do this. We don't appreciate life itself. But as you watch it, you just want to get out of your seat and go start living. After I saw it, my friend and I went out for dinner and just talked about everything we felt while watching the play, and I don't think I'll ever forget that moment. It wasn't the substance of our conversation, but just that we were taking time out of life to enjoy a meal and a glass of wine. Those are the moments that I want to hang onto: the simple things in life.
Our Town was this beautiful reminder of what I want to take to my grave. I've had this play in my heart ever since I first read the script, and this production was just so beautiful that I know the images it created for me will join that space. It achieved what theatre is meant to do at its best. It made me look at my life and really think of what I want out of it.
Please read this play and learn from it. It's theatre that can change your life.