|
|
Post by mortsahlfan on Mar 4, 2019 18:43:10 GMT
There are millions of critics (some in here) who'll talk about movements in film, almost every decade (neo-realism, new wave, etc), but I've never read about change in theatre. I imagine there's less, but besides technology, I can't think of any changes, besides our own history, which can influence new stories.
|
|
|
|
Post by drystyx on Mar 4, 2019 19:55:47 GMT
Very impressive post.
Theatrical evolution is supposed to precede motion picture evolution.
I became involved in Theater early, being cast in plays for whatever reason, even in the second grade.
I really didn't understand much about it until about the eleventh grade, and even then my hormones did most of my thinking, plus my quest for survival, important for a 14 year old.
Writing plays and being in many different community theater productions, I got to work with dozens of directors and producers.
And I was aware of what movies and television offered. I was always aware of propaganda, even in the second grade. One of the first movies I remember seeing, was WAR OF THE WORLDS, and what I noticed most was that the movie seemed to want to sell wrist watches over pocket watches, since the only pocket watch carrier died a horrible death, but nothing happened to those with wrist watches. And I noticed that there was a plug for fried eggs. These things were always noticeable to me.
So, I easily noticed the evolution in TV and movies, and in Theater at the time. I can't say if it had been in Theater before I participated, so I can't say if it happened in Theater first.
I did see the most obvious thing was that directors were control freaks, not over the cast, but over the public. Out of about 59 different directors, only 3 didn't come right out and blurt that the audience had to adapt to them, not they to the audience. They didn't care about alienating audience members.
In fact, if one looks at films from before about 1965, one sees the incredible change of being at peace with the viewer to one after 1965 of just totally alienating and abusing innocent people who might view. Blaming the victim was the ongoing theme of the sixties protests. Sure, a few would blame big shots like Johnson and Nixon and generals, but most blamed the poorest white man they could find, someone from whom there would be no reprisals, so that also meant finding "innocent poor white men" whose ancestors never even had one thing to do with the charges leveled against other white men.
That was the huge "evolution". Theater and film appealed to mob mentality. There was absolutely no attempt to change mob mentality, despite the lies of the protest movement.
Directors and producers thought it best to choose one or two innocent sacrifices to make the mob happy. Since they could no longer do it to slaves or former slaves, or minorities, it simply meant they could choose new victims from the lower class white men.
It culminated with MASH, the most hate mongering TV series ever. The series wasn't far off from the book. The book picked one man to demonetize, and it never was credible. It looked like picking someone to blame, and one couldn't believe Frank Burns really existed as the book described. It was obvious that the writer was simply appealing to mob mentality. The TV series did the same.
The producers and director of MASH, and the actors, they knew full well that they were preaching mob mentality. They knew most Americans who watched didn't watch for facts about whom to blame for problems. They knew most Americans were latched onto mob mentality, and simply picked someone to blame, and these families that formed mobs would pick someone totally innocent to accuse of being the Frank Burns. Facts never mattered, and the people who were in MASH knew this. They weren't morons. They preached mob mentality.
The theater evolved into mob mentality, into self righteousness, as did movies and TV.
Now, after 9-11, there was a brief change. The same Americans who thought their private mobs and families were superior and had the right to destroy anyone they deemed an enemy, people who admired the idea of perhaps taking over a complex and wiping out thousands of people to every 18 they lost, saw it happen to them, and that's why most Americans were so angry about 9-11.
They weren't angry because of the lack of humanity. They were angry because they felt that was their thunder being stolen, that they were the ones who should inflict such casualties on an enemy. You could tell that's why they were burned up inside. Not talking about those who lost family members. Talking about those who didn't and still bellowed out in blind rage.
You could see a more relaxed character, a more non-judgmental character in Theater and TV and even films, after 2001.
Sadly, that hasn't lasted. Too many sickos are out there, idolizing Hannibal the cannibal, the Joker and his girlfriend, and other sick demented idols. You can't deny nearly half the posters of IMDB do this.
Another evolution of Theater and of TV is that the "sticks" have changed. The "hicks" are no longer those on rural farms, since they are well to do and have had social media the longest. They don't have to go to the library to do it, either. The new "sticks" are in city slums and poor neighborhoods.
Thus, there is almost no "unknown" to most audiences anywhere in the first world. Couple this with the need to choose innocent sacrifices, and the evolution really isn't there, although few directors and writers are aware of this. The writers who can afford Final Draft and have the connections are sorely out of touch with the reality. In effect, they are all "Donald Trump", especially the ones who claim to hate "Donald Trump". After all, he stole their thunder.
|
|
|
|
Post by mortsahlfan on Mar 5, 2019 15:33:49 GMT
You make some excellent points. I would guess the change hasn't been very exponential, and besides history, I think current events are more in the air. I wonder how close theatre is reflecting what people are talking about.
|
|
|
|
Post by mortsahlfan on Mar 6, 2019 1:34:30 GMT
drystyx Avatar
Mar 4, 2019 14:55:47 GMT -5 drystyx said:
Very impressive post.
Theatrical evolution is supposed to precede motion picture evolution.
I became involved in Theater early, being cast in plays for whatever reason, even in the second grade.
I really didn't understand much about it until about the eleventh grade, and even then my hormones did most of my thinking, plus my quest for survival, important for a 14 year old.
Writing plays and being in many different community theater productions, I got to work with dozens of directors and producers.
And I was aware of what movies and television offered. I was always aware of propaganda, even in the second grade. One of the first movies I remember seeing, was WAR OF THE WORLDS, and what I noticed most was that the movie seemed to want to sell wrist watches over pocket watches, since the only pocket watch carrier died a horrible death, but nothing happened to those with wrist watches. And I noticed that there was a plug for fried eggs. These things were always noticeable to me.
So, I easily noticed the evolution in TV and movies, and in Theater at the time. I can't say if it had been in Theater before I participated, so I can't say if it happened in Theater first.
I did see the most obvious thing was that directors were control freaks, not over the cast, but over the public. Out of about 59 different directors, only 3 didn't come right out and blurt that the audience had to adapt to them, not they to the audience. They didn't care about alienating audience members.
In fact, if one looks at films from before about 1965, one sees the incredible change of being at peace with the viewer to one after 1965 of just totally alienating and abusing innocent people who might view. Blaming the victim was the ongoing theme of the sixties protests. Sure, a few would blame big shots like Johnson and Nixon and generals, but most blamed the poorest white man they could find, someone from whom there would be no reprisals, so that also meant finding "innocent poor white men" whose ancestors never even had one thing to do with the charges leveled against other white men.
That was the huge "evolution". Theater and film appealed to mob mentality. There was absolutely no attempt to change mob mentality, despite the lies of the protest movement.
Directors and producers thought it best to choose one or two innocent sacrifices to make the mob happy. Since they could no longer do it to slaves or former slaves, or minorities, it simply meant they could choose new victims from the lower class white men.
It culminated with MASH, the most hate mongering TV series ever. The series wasn't far off from the book. The book picked one man to demonetize, and it never was credible. It looked like picking someone to blame, and one couldn't believe Frank Burns really existed as the book described. It was obvious that the writer was simply appealing to mob mentality. The TV series did the same.
The producers and director of MASH, and the actors, they knew full well that they were preaching mob mentality. They knew most Americans who watched didn't watch for facts about whom to blame for problems. They knew most Americans were latched onto mob mentality, and simply picked someone to blame, and these families that formed mobs would pick someone totally innocent to accuse of being the Frank Burns. Facts never mattered, and the people who were in MASH knew this. They weren't morons. They preached mob mentality.
The theater evolved into mob mentality, into self righteousness, as did movies and TV.
Now, after 9-11, there was a brief change. The same Americans who thought their private mobs and families were superior and had the right to destroy anyone they deemed an enemy, people who admired the idea of perhaps taking over a complex and wiping out thousands of people to every 18 they lost, saw it happen to them, and that's why most Americans were so angry about 9-11.
They weren't angry because of the lack of humanity. They were angry because they felt that was their thunder being stolen, that they were the ones who should inflict such casualties on an enemy. You could tell that's why they were burned up inside. Not talking about those who lost family members. Talking about those who didn't and still bellowed out in blind rage.
You could see a more relaxed character, a more non-judgmental character in Theater and TV and even films, after 2001.
Sadly, that hasn't lasted. Too many sickos are out there, idolizing Hannibal the cannibal, the Joker and his girlfriend, and other sick demented idols. You can't deny nearly half the posters of IMDB do this.
Another evolution of Theater and of TV is that the "sticks" have changed. The "hicks" are no longer those on rural farms, since they are well to do and have had social media the longest. They don't have to go to the library to do it, either. The new "sticks" are in city slums and poor neighborhoods.
Thus, there is almost no "unknown" to most audiences anywhere in the first world. Couple this with the need to choose innocent sacrifices, and the evolution really isn't there, although few directors and writers are aware of this. The writers who can afford Final Draft and have the connections are sorely out of touch with the reality. In effect, they are all "Donald Trump", especially the ones who claim to hate "Donald Trump". After all, he stole their thunder.
You make some excellent points. I would guess the change hasn't been very exponential, and besides history, I think current events are more in the air. I wonder how close theatre is reflecting what people are talking about.
|
|
