Monday, May 20, 2013

Behind the Mask of Drama

On Saturday I went to the theater, or is it theatre?  As little as I know about drama production, it is all the same to me, except I think theatre looks more exotic.  Anyway, I had the opportunity of going to see "The Secret Garden" at the Centerpoint Legacy Theatre.  I had some notion that because "The Secret Garden" is a story about children, that it would be a play made specifically for children. 
          I was in for a marvelous surprise!  Once inside the theatre, I could hear the sweet chirp of a bird, which had the effect of preparing me to enter a garden.  Another surprising element, was that this play was more of a musical than I had supposed.  There were over twenty-five songs, giving the musical an operetta feel all the way through. 
                            
I thought it interesting how many of the characters were first depicted as living, and then later became a chorus of ghosts who deliver a large part of the dialogue in the plot development. 

The story is about a ten year old girl and her journey to a foreign land as well as a journey to find her life after losing everyone she knows and loves.  Death was depicted by darkening the lights while the characters are dancing to a minuet, and one by one, a red scarf appears next to them.  You soon become aware they were overtaken by cholera, all except Mary, who is found asleep by British authorities in India. 

I thought the protagonist would be Mary.  Then her Uncle Archibald enters the scene, and before long it became more apparent he was the protagonist.  Can a play have two protagonists?  Through exposition, I was caring equally about what would happen to both of them.  The plot centers on both as they find new ways to love after losing all they cared about.  This quest to redirect their love is like the secret garden, which becomes a metaphor for something that is lost and forgotten, but with tender care regains it's former brilliance

The antagonist is Uncle Archibald's brother who seems bent on taking advantage of Archibald's grief from the loss of his wife.  He also is plotting to take over Archibald's estate by doing away with his son and heir.  He even sings about his love for Archibald's dead wife!  It seems he wants everything his brother has.  Mary intervenes by discovering both Archibald's son and the secret garden, which is the climax of the play. 

It is during the denouement, or untying of events that Archibald, his son, Colin, and Mary finally find love redirected.

During the performance, I became aware of the magic of drama and how real issues of life can be depicted and masked through different forms and disguises. 

9 comments:

  1. I am glad you enjoyed it so much. I saw The Secret Garden at the Hale theater last year. I love the book and I have seen the movie but never the play. I really enjoyed it too. There truly is magic in drama and a good play or musical can really bring you into that magic!

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    1. I think it was the actors singing that touched me most, especially Archibald. He stole the show.

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  2. Wow that sounds like an interesting play, I like how they had the chirp of bird present before entering the theater to set you up for the play.

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    1. Sometimes it is the seemingly small details that can make a good play even better.

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  3. I love how you structured your post and used so many terms for discussing drama. It really helped me to better understand each term with the context of your post. Thank you!

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    1. Thanks Jocelyn! I've never done much with drama, but it does sound interesting. Dr. Burton has brought so much to my attention that I have never noticed or I haven't put a name to.

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  4. I love The Secret Garden! I've only ever seen the movie, it would be great to check out the play. Thanks for such a detailed and informative post!

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    1. I think I saw the movie or read the book a long time ago, so it was almost like new to see the play and I realized that it is about so much more than I had believed it to be.

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  5. It sounds like a great play! And it sounds almost like the Broadway plays I've seen because of the use of music and kind of setting the play before it starts; like you said the chirping of the bird, for other plays it could be the setting of the stage or the decorations round the theatre.

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