Since I was backstage for the most part, I was never able to see a direct audience response. Still, I was able to gauge a small sample size of the audience opinion from speaking to viewers at intermission and after the show ended. My friends that attended Vanya lauded the performance by the cast, collectively agreeing that all of the acting was superb. Another aspect of the show that my friends enjoyed was the music in between acts and at various points during the play. Going beyond the sensory appeal of well-played music, I think Bart’s compositions helped to set the mood throughout the show and elevated the monologues to entrancing and robust levels. I especially think that during a long performance like Vanya, music helps to keep the audience engaged and entertained.

I felt like an audience member during parts of the rehearsal and production process. So in the processing of analyzing the audience’s reaction I have intrinsically woven in my own opinions and reflections about Vanya. One thing I am curious about is how the audience reaction changes after viewing Vanya the second time around. Nick’s parents briefly mentioned that they were looking forward to seeing Vanya for a second time because they had, after the first view, a firm grasp of the doubles in the cast and the structure of the play. I think it becomes easier to appreciate the humor in Vanya after each successive viewing, because one becomes desensitized to the tragedy and sadness within the play and more receptive to its irony and whim.

From night to night, I think the audience varied with their energy level, responsiveness, and reception to Vanya. However, I don’t think the quieter audiences should be dismissed as uninterested and bored. To parallel Vanya with a film viewing, the initial reaction is comparable to the highs and lows during the movie itself – seating on the edge of your seat during suspenseful scenes, jumping out of your seat during frightening ones, crying like a little girl during sad scenes. For me, a second reaction generally materializes on the drive home, when I reflect on what I have just seen, recollecting the segments that I found particularly poignant or compelling. In one way or another, every performance evokes a reaction from the audience. Even someone in an unresponsive crowd, who rarely expressed emotion in an outright manner, may have privately and intimately had a profound reaction to the performance. I think there is a lot more to gain from any performance art by quietly absorbing it and and musing over what about it was enjoyable/tiresome rather than passing immediate judgment about what could have been done better.

Throughout the semester, I felt like a cog within the production process and it was gratifying to see Vanya come to fruition. I originally enrolled in this class to learn more about theater, and I did – from both an acting and a production standpoint. I felt accepted within Vanya company, and I think this will be an experience that I will look back fondly upon. Thanks everyone.

-Reddy