Space Travel
In theatre, many worlds are created through the production of plays that come to life on stage. As audience members, I like to think of us as astronauts who conduct galactic travels between these worlds of plays. My latest trip was to the world of “No Child…” by Nilaja Sun, a planet where its creator lives and embodies the created. Space is constructed around one setting that is created by a school janitor Baron, who led me on a tour of the planet. It wasn’t very long at all, surprisingly. He took me to the Malcolm X High School, which is an old, eroding building that complimented the desolate landscape. Sometimes, there can be time warps on a play’s planet, but luckily there were none there. Time moves in a straight forward direction, just like back at home. However, the janitor, who is simultaneously Nilaja Sun, controlled the progression of time. We stepped into a classroom where I see him morph into other characters in a seamless transition. One character is Miss Sun, who tirelessly tries to make the other characters perform the play, Our Country’s Good by Timberlake Wertenbaker (Sun 292). She then transforms into the students who are uncooperative and uninspired by their teacher’s efforts. The language here on this planet is loud and profane, and the students address one another with a harsh, but comedic tone. I watch with dejection as the students vote Miss Sun to leave as time progresses, but one student, Jerome, pleas for her return (Sun 305). More problems occur when another student, José misses the final rehearsals due to the death of his brother (Sun 310). Thunderstorms and rain dominate the weather for days until the day of the show when José reappears from mourning. Then, sunrays peep through the clouds sheepishly as if they themselves know the rarity of their appearance. Janitor Baron never shows us the performance of Our Country’s Good, but accolades from the administration and parents can be heard. Before our departure from this planet, Janitor Baron moves time forward exponentially, into a fantastical future where Miss Sun is married to Denzel Washington and the school is renamed Saint Tupac Shakur Preparatory. The resulting atmosphere is clear and calm, with bright blue skies and even a brighter sun.
One (Wo)Man Show
This one-act, one-actor production completely exemplifies the common adage ‘less is more’. The minimalistic use of actors, dialogue, settings, and props create an atmosphere that is just as effective, if not more, in conveying the message that through unity, anything can be accomplished. Maya Roth compliments Sun in Project Muse of her ‘bold physicality, rapid dialogue, and immaculate comic timing’ in her March 2009 article (Roth 109). In Carol Martin’s Bodies of Evidence, the discussion of what documentary theatre does is categorized into six divisions called functions (Martin 14). One function that is identifiable with “No Child…” is the critique of the operations of both documentary and fiction. The archive within the play is simulated; Nilaja Sun creates an example of how the No Child Left Behind Act (Balock, 2005, No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, 20 U.S.C. § 6319) affected the public school system. Though this is only directly referred to only once within the production, it is hinted in the title as well as interviews with Sun. Sun also worked a public school teaching artist who had witnessed these effects first hand. “No Child…” intermingles autobiography with history through the use of a first hand account that is an active participant of the production (Martin 14). This second function seems to be the primary force that drives this one-actor play, which becomes very apparent when viewing it (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vbx5MNj0a-A). The strategic choosing of Our Country’s Good to be used as the students’ play is a pure genius of symbolism; the parallels of confinement of the students and that of the convicts interplay masterfully(http://www.enotes.com/topic/Our_Country’s_Good). Just like the convicts in Wartenbaker’s work, the students are limited by their resources and also by the adverse thoughts of others. The only negative critique that can be given to Sun is her failure to show at least a glimpse of the students’ play. Though this may have proved to be impractical in producing, it leaves the audience unsatisfied without seeing something that had been the main focus. Its absence, however, does not undermine any of the two functions but would have greatly enhanced it.
You have a very strong and unique introduction, which I think is very effective in your descriptive mention of theater.
I would’ve liked to know how the one-woman show aspect of the play changed the experience of the audience. You said that the style does an effective job of conveying the message and I think it would also be worthwhile to try and let your readers know the difference in experience at this one-woman show since it is a rare occasion to watch one.
You mentioned that your only critique was not being able to get a glimpse of the play that the students were putting together. I asked myself how the story of the play Our Country’s Good affected experiences of the students. For example, the 2007 movie Freedom Writers (starring Hillary Swank) is about a teacher who transforms the attentiveness of her students using The Diary of Anne Frank. Can you feel the power of Our Country’s Good when reading about the transformation of the students in “No Child…”? What does it feel like?
In the second paragraph when you discuss reviews on the play, I like that you use a writing style that feels like you’re also sharing a review with your readers in your examination. I might consider reviews that further the conversation that Nilaja Sun has started and I might also consider a writing style that fosters such dialogue. I really enjoyed reading this piece and I look forward to seeing your writing progress through this writing assignment.
For the most part, the majority of the strengths in this entry lies in its creativity. I like the idea of considering each play as a different planet, but I think it would be more effective if you invited the audience to come with you on this journey to “No Child”. That way we could actually become not only active in reading the entry but also in formulating this planet. Also, you use the passive voice a lot in your writing, so instead of saying “there are many worlds that exist that are created by the pens of playwrights”, you could reorganize the sentence so that the “to be” verb is not used.
Also, be clear in what you are trying to say. I know that sounds vague, but when you describe Malcolm X it sounds like the person instead of a high school. In other words, make your sentences more cohesive and descriptive. Be clear and simple when describing. Try not to use too many appositives because the commas make the sentence sound choppy and detached. It might be cool to address the relationship between “No Child” and “Our Country’s Good” so that the reader is aware of Sun’s intentions for the play. When you talk about the Janitor moving time exponentially, you could explain why he does this. What is the significance? How does Denzel Washington relate to the play?
In the second paragraph, you could reanalyze the functions of the play and how those functions relate to Carol Martin’s article. If you give us specific examples from the play to back up your asserts concerning its functions then we would have a better idea of what the play focuses on. You could also try to find more faults about the play or elaborate on what you already have. How would seeing the performance of “Our Country’s Good” enhance the play as a whole? You could also explore the credibility of the play. Because Sun actually experienced the events of the play, can we fully rely on her to tell the whole story? Great job Bree!