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Saturday, December 7, 2013
'Tis Pity She's a Whore
When reading 'Tis Pity She's a Whore, John Ford's use of blood imagery really stood out to me. The plot itself is literally very bloody, containing lots of murder and physical violence. However, the characters also speak of blood fairly often. I know that containing hearts or daggers on the production poster would be a little go-to, but I think that blood imagery could server very well. The following quotes would also serve very well as catchphrases for the production:
#1: "Nearness in birth or blood doth but persuade a nearer nearness in affection." (Act I, Scene 2, Line 232)
Giovanni says this to Annabella after they reveal their love for one another. These characters are brother and sister, which creates a rather sizable conflict in the plot of 'Tis Pity She's a Whore. This quote represents blood as familial connection as well as a medium of passion. Family and passion are both major themes of this play.
#2: "I fear the event; that marriage seldom's good, where the bride-banquet so begins in blood." (Act IV, Scene 1, Line 108)
Friar says this to Giovanni at the banquet for Annabella and Richardetto's wedding after Hippolita is murdered. This quote foreshadows the violent end of their marriage and, ultimately, the play. It also compares blood with marriage, which is another huge theme in this play. The menare willing to fight and kill for the right to marry their chosen bride.
#3: "I have prevented now they reaching plots, and killed a love, for whose each drop of blood I would have pawned my heart." (Act V, Scene 5, Line 100)
Giovanni says this just after killing his sister/lover, Annabella. This quote actually quantifies and puts a value on blood. Giovanni is saying that he would offer his heart up for even a single drop of Annabella's blood. Choosing this as a tagline for the play would give it a sense of gravity and high stakes. It also depicts blood as something that is fought over, which is very true in the world of this play.
#1: "Nearness in birth or blood doth but persuade a nearer nearness in affection." (Act I, Scene 2, Line 232)
Giovanni says this to Annabella after they reveal their love for one another. These characters are brother and sister, which creates a rather sizable conflict in the plot of 'Tis Pity She's a Whore. This quote represents blood as familial connection as well as a medium of passion. Family and passion are both major themes of this play.
#2: "I fear the event; that marriage seldom's good, where the bride-banquet so begins in blood." (Act IV, Scene 1, Line 108)
Friar says this to Giovanni at the banquet for Annabella and Richardetto's wedding after Hippolita is murdered. This quote foreshadows the violent end of their marriage and, ultimately, the play. It also compares blood with marriage, which is another huge theme in this play. The menare willing to fight and kill for the right to marry their chosen bride.
#3: "I have prevented now they reaching plots, and killed a love, for whose each drop of blood I would have pawned my heart." (Act V, Scene 5, Line 100)
Giovanni says this just after killing his sister/lover, Annabella. This quote actually quantifies and puts a value on blood. Giovanni is saying that he would offer his heart up for even a single drop of Annabella's blood. Choosing this as a tagline for the play would give it a sense of gravity and high stakes. It also depicts blood as something that is fought over, which is very true in the world of this play.
Water by the Spoonful
In Water by the Spoonful, Hudes provides us with two distinct worlds: the "real world" and the "online world." Initially, these worlds exist almost independently from one another. However, as the play progresses, these two worlds intersect.
One scene in which I think this choice is particularly highlighted is Scene 7. It is the first time that we see Odessa and John in the "real world," and we learn that they also exist as Haikumom and Fountainhead in the "online world." I think that this was done in order to highlight the differences in these characters' "real world" personalities versus their "online" personalities. It also matches a physical form to a digital being. This can be a very shocking experience, as people are capable of only publishing information online that they want other people to know about them, whether or not it is necessarily even true.
In the online world, Haikumom presents herself as very loving, nurturing, and motherly. She constantly censors the other chat room attendees' profanities. She is also very encouraging towards the others in their steps towards drug rehabilitation. In the diner in Scene 7, however, she does not behave in the same manner. Odessa, as she is called in the real world, is very cynical towards rehabilitation, and she is also relatively foul-mouthed. When she's on the phone at the table, she says, "What? I told you, the diner on Spring Garden and Third. I'm busy, come in an hour. One hour. Now stop calling me and asking fucking directions." This really displayed how we are capable for putting up a total display in front of others while secretly being an entirely different person.
One scene in which I think this choice is particularly highlighted is Scene 7. It is the first time that we see Odessa and John in the "real world," and we learn that they also exist as Haikumom and Fountainhead in the "online world." I think that this was done in order to highlight the differences in these characters' "real world" personalities versus their "online" personalities. It also matches a physical form to a digital being. This can be a very shocking experience, as people are capable of only publishing information online that they want other people to know about them, whether or not it is necessarily even true.
In the online world, Haikumom presents herself as very loving, nurturing, and motherly. She constantly censors the other chat room attendees' profanities. She is also very encouraging towards the others in their steps towards drug rehabilitation. In the diner in Scene 7, however, she does not behave in the same manner. Odessa, as she is called in the real world, is very cynical towards rehabilitation, and she is also relatively foul-mouthed. When she's on the phone at the table, she says, "What? I told you, the diner on Spring Garden and Third. I'm busy, come in an hour. One hour. Now stop calling me and asking fucking directions." This really displayed how we are capable for putting up a total display in front of others while secretly being an entirely different person.
Topdog/Underdog
After doing a little bit of research and discussing 3-card Monte in class, I think I've come up with a possible connection of these theatrical mirrors in the play.
In 3-card Monte, when it's done "right", the player, or "mark", never wins the game. It's typically set up with people who are pretending to play the game called shills. The dealer convinces the mark that he can make some easy money, and tricks him into following the wrong card using sleight-of-hand. If the target does pick the correct card by chance, one of the shills will out-bet him/her. This way, the dealer never accepts a winning bet from the mark. When orchestrated correctly, it is impossible for anyone to win this game.
This is exactly what I think is mirrored in the lives of Lincoln and Booth. Lincoln works as an Abraham Lincoln impersonator reenacting his assassination, and he is treated very poorly at his work. His boss actually fires him and replaces him with a wax figure. While Lincoln was very successful in making money from 3-card Monte, his "honest Abe" attempt at life is not working out as well. The cards are stacked against him, and he cannot win the game.
While Lincoln excels at the card game, Booth does not. Although he tries very hard and practices frequently, he's not quite as skilled as his brother. Although Lincoln is tricks Booth into thinking that he's winning, he also lets him know that no one actually wins at 3-card Monte unless the dealer lets them. At the end of the play, Booth "assassinates" his brother, Lincoln. This symbolizes how neither of these characters are ever able of really "winning the game."
In 3-card Monte, when it's done "right", the player, or "mark", never wins the game. It's typically set up with people who are pretending to play the game called shills. The dealer convinces the mark that he can make some easy money, and tricks him into following the wrong card using sleight-of-hand. If the target does pick the correct card by chance, one of the shills will out-bet him/her. This way, the dealer never accepts a winning bet from the mark. When orchestrated correctly, it is impossible for anyone to win this game.
This is exactly what I think is mirrored in the lives of Lincoln and Booth. Lincoln works as an Abraham Lincoln impersonator reenacting his assassination, and he is treated very poorly at his work. His boss actually fires him and replaces him with a wax figure. While Lincoln was very successful in making money from 3-card Monte, his "honest Abe" attempt at life is not working out as well. The cards are stacked against him, and he cannot win the game.
While Lincoln excels at the card game, Booth does not. Although he tries very hard and practices frequently, he's not quite as skilled as his brother. Although Lincoln is tricks Booth into thinking that he's winning, he also lets him know that no one actually wins at 3-card Monte unless the dealer lets them. At the end of the play, Booth "assassinates" his brother, Lincoln. This symbolizes how neither of these characters are ever able of really "winning the game."
Next to Normal
It was definitely hard to separate my reaction to the music and how much I enjoyed this play in order to analyze it. However, I did the best that I could to listen to the music from a script analysis standpoint. The two Horby elements I'd like to discuss in reference to this play are Irony/Ambiguity/Complexity and Sequence.
From the get-go, Next to Normal is filled with Irony, Ambiguity, and Complexity. We as an audience do not initially know that Gabriel is dead. It's not until the family sits down for dinner and Diana announces Gabe's birthday that we learn he actually died before Natalie was even born. Although Diana is being treated for her psychological problems, we as an audience do not know if the Gabe that we are seeing on stage exists solely as a part of Diana's mind, as a ghost, or as something else. It's particularly confusing because Gabe died when he was eight months old, but the character that we see has aged to seventeen. One particular moment that stood out as ambiguous to me was the very end of the play when Dan and Gabe sing "I Am the One (reprise)." The music for this song changes drastically to a more sinister tone than the preceding "So Anyway." If the seventeen-year old personification of Gabe only exists in Diana's mind, then why are Dan and Gabe singing this song together? Gabe also addresses Dan at the end of the song after Dan says, "Gabe. Gabriel."
I'd like to talk about the Sequence of the music in Next to Normal. Specifically, I'd like to talk about how the characters frequently sing simultaneously. For example, the entire family sings "Just Another Day" and "Make Up Your Mind / Catch Me I'm Falling" together. I found this to signify that they are all in a struggle together as a family, but things never seem to get any better for any of them. One part in particular in which this really stood out to me was when Dan and Gabe sing "I Am the One" towards the end of the first act. The music and layering of lyrics in this song gave the feel that Dan and Gabe were battling each other for Diana's love and for their own existences. They both feel as though they need her in order to be alive, and she can only choose one of them. The shift to a rock score for this song also made it seem more like a battle to me. On a broad scope, I noticed that Act I was mostly filled with more upbeat music, and Act II mostly contained their reprises. It was a natural progression for the music to take.
From the get-go, Next to Normal is filled with Irony, Ambiguity, and Complexity. We as an audience do not initially know that Gabriel is dead. It's not until the family sits down for dinner and Diana announces Gabe's birthday that we learn he actually died before Natalie was even born. Although Diana is being treated for her psychological problems, we as an audience do not know if the Gabe that we are seeing on stage exists solely as a part of Diana's mind, as a ghost, or as something else. It's particularly confusing because Gabe died when he was eight months old, but the character that we see has aged to seventeen. One particular moment that stood out as ambiguous to me was the very end of the play when Dan and Gabe sing "I Am the One (reprise)." The music for this song changes drastically to a more sinister tone than the preceding "So Anyway." If the seventeen-year old personification of Gabe only exists in Diana's mind, then why are Dan and Gabe singing this song together? Gabe also addresses Dan at the end of the song after Dan says, "Gabe. Gabriel."
I'd like to talk about the Sequence of the music in Next to Normal. Specifically, I'd like to talk about how the characters frequently sing simultaneously. For example, the entire family sings "Just Another Day" and "Make Up Your Mind / Catch Me I'm Falling" together. I found this to signify that they are all in a struggle together as a family, but things never seem to get any better for any of them. One part in particular in which this really stood out to me was when Dan and Gabe sing "I Am the One" towards the end of the first act. The music and layering of lyrics in this song gave the feel that Dan and Gabe were battling each other for Diana's love and for their own existences. They both feel as though they need her in order to be alive, and she can only choose one of them. The shift to a rock score for this song also made it seem more like a battle to me. On a broad scope, I noticed that Act I was mostly filled with more upbeat music, and Act II mostly contained their reprises. It was a natural progression for the music to take.
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