The Rubric

                                                                                                          Photograph: Sam Mircovich/REUTERS


    Let's be real. I'm not the most organized person in the whole wide world. So, if I don't at least give myself a template to completely ignore this blog will never go anywhere. Here's how this is all going to work: I will review productions at GW based on 5 things. Set, lights, acting, directing, and company presentation.

Set:
   What's a show without the technical elements? In the set section of my reviews I'll talk all about the place. First off, what did the set even look like? I mean, it's hard to give a reader a review of something if they don't even know what it is! Second, did the set work for the show? Meaning, did it detract from the production or did it help the audience to believe where we are and dive into the world of a play. Third, was it well constructed or did they slap a few pieces of luan together and call it a day?

Lights:
   Anyone who has worked with me will tell you my harshest critiques are going to come here. I'm a lights guy. Always have been, always will be. Lights serve as a crucial element of any production. It is not only important to set the mood, hide the things we don't want to see, and create pretty colors on stage; we also need to see the actors do their work! This section will review all these aspects as well as any cool special effects that pop up.

Acting:
   Ahhh the actors - the only ones who really care about reviews at the end of the day. There are a few things that make a good actor, and a whole lot that make a bad one. We'll talk all about it right here. Just you, me, a fuzzy blanket, and the glass of wine I will inevitably be drinking while writing these posts.

Directing:
   "OMG! Wouldn't it be, like, sooooo cool if he did the entire monologue while hugging the back wall!?!?!?!"..... No. No it would not. The director, at the end of the day [you're another day older (but seriously, who else is excited for the new Les Mis movie?)], is the one who really makes or breaks a production. Their vision is what shapes the play into context. Right here is where we'll go into my favorite question about a play: what was the point of that?

Company Presentation:
    Each one of the shows I'll be reviewing has to be presented by some company. Well, how'd they do? Were the posters cool or a total mess? Was getting into the theater a pain in the ass? Was the company money grubbing and shoving people into seats where they can't see a damn thing? Each of the companies on campus has a different way of doing things, so let's talk about what works and what doesn't!

That's the plan folks!

See you in the theater,
Ed

Welcome! [Biases Exposed]

Hello friends,
      Welcome to Thespian's Theater Thoughts! I promise I didn't make it just because I like alliteration. So why am I writing this blog and what is it all about? Well, this blog is all about theater at GWU. GW has four active student theater companies and a main stage theater department. It also has a student newspaper that doesn't seem to understand what theater is and does. My hope with this blog is to present reviews of productions at GW from the point of view of your average theater kid. Not just the kind of fluff reviews you read in the hatchet giving a brief plot outline and quoting a few actors - but real reviews detailing the successes and failures of a given production.
      In order to actually present reviews like this I need to expose my biases up front. So here goes:

FACT NUMBER ONE:
   The most important thing I need to say about this blog is the following. The theater community at GWU is my home. These people are my friends and I care about them all whole-heartedly. It is my sincere hope that those who read this blog (many of whom will likely be those very friends) understand that these reviews are coming from the point of view of a student pursuing theater as a career. I don't want to hurt anybody's feelings, damage any reputations, or burn any bridges. I simply want to provide realistic reviews. Yes, that means that not all of my reviews will be good or positive. But, if I accidentally offend anyone, please, don't take it personally. Just brush it off as another of Ed's crazy opinions.

Fourteenth Grade Players:
      I myself have been involved with theater at GW for the past three years. Most of the work I did was with the 14th Grade Players. With them, I have directed three shows, served as an assistant technical director and a producer, and acted in several productions. Fourteenth was truly a home for me for three years. But, I would be lying if I didn't also admit that I harbor some lingering frustration with where the company has gone. Not that the company is bad in anyway, just that I feel I no longer truly fit in there as a member. But then again, I no longer affiliate myself with any student theater company and, quite honestly, do not know many of the newer members of 14th Grade.

Forbidden Planet Productions:
     I directed Next to Normal with FPP last year and had one of the most rewarding and exciting experiences of my theater career. That being the case, I have a lot of warm fuzzy feelings regarding FPP. I hang out with a lot of the board members and consider pretty much everyone in this company to be a close friend. I also live with the current executive producer of FPP. If there is any company for which I have a strong positive bias for - it's gonna be FPP. But, on the flip side of that coin, I am often annoyed with the "phi pi pi" attitude of the company and the glitz and glam heaped onto their productions. No company is perfect.

Generic Theater Company:
      For some reason, in my GW theater experience Generic has always been the "other" company. In my freshmen year I worked with them briefly but mostly under the auspices of being 14th's ATD. In fact, Generic back then was often the company we shit on behind close doors (shocker! secrets revealed!). But, I've made a lot of friends in Generic over the past few years and my opinions on the company don't particularly lean in either direction. Generic has had a lot of ups and downs, but at the very least I feel they manage to pull off one really solid production a semester.

GW Shakespeare Company:
     As the youngest addition to the GW theater community, I have never worked with GW Shakespeare (or as I like to call them: baby-shakes). Still, I have followed their progress since a group of frat bros threw the company together a few years back. Since then baby-shakes has come a long way. They are now full-time members of the Student Theater Council and are growing rapidly. At the end of last year they set up a "board of directors" including prominent figures from many of DC's best and brightest theaters. I am certainly excited to see what that turns into and where GW Shakespeare is headed from here.

GW Main Stage:
     I am a fully participating member of the GW theater department. Not just a member, actually, but a theater major working on my thesis. But, I can easily see the downfalls of the department. I'm pretty sure my opinions on this will be pretty fair and balanced. I have observed a lot of positives of the department, but I've observed quite a few of its downfalls too.


   So, that's where I stand. I hope you enjoy where I'm going with this blog. Now, get out there and see some shows!

See you in the theater,
Ed