Any time that an audience steps into a theater, they are expected to “suspend their disbelief”. This tenant, one of the cornerstones that theater is built on, asks audiences to leave the standards of the outside world behind, stepping into the world of the production where it is perfectly acceptable for those on stage to break into song and dance. Due to this factor, musicals may lack a feel of realism. Events in musicals occur for a specific reason; moving the plot forward to a resolution that is appropriate for the time written. In other words, nothing just happens.
It is essential for those who attend musicals, especially revivals, to note this fact and have an understanding of the bias of a creative team from the time the musical was written. The Golden Age of Musical Theater, lasting from about 1943 up until 1959, led to the creation of many famous works that unintentionally contain situations that deal with many issues that we would now view as problematic. Two great examples of this can be found in two of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s most famous works, The King and I, for its cultural appropriation and Western Domination and Carousel, for its treatment of women and domestic abuse. These are just two shows of many that deal with issues of this caliber.
Some argue that revivals of such classics musicals should not be done, as they can be interpreted as wrong and counterproductive to the progress of equality in our country. However, while it may feel uncomfortable, these musicals are snapshots into a specific time and culture. They allow us to see how these issues were dealt with at that time. If we as a culture believe that we must learn from our past, it is counterproductive to erase these detailed illustrations. We need to witness them, understand them, and use their subject matter to grow.
Moving forward it is essential that directors charged with bringing such revivals back deal with sensitive content by making appropriate choices in the production. This can be done without changing the book or lyrics, but rather the interpretation and some of the context. We no longer need to suspend as much disbelief as we did during the Golden Age as we now have the technology to accurately portray another country or time period. Do the research, understand the culture, create an accurate representation that does not appropriate another culture. When dealing with topics of domestic abuse in Carousel, work to ensure that these themes are not as dehumanizing to the female character by having her unspoken actions in the scene show her discontent.
Although musical revivals do not always avoid controversial material, they promote a change from the original context that is a step forward. May these musicals act as stepping stones toward forward progress allowing us to look back at where we came from and inform us of the forward progress that still needs to be made. Just as I ask the directors and creative teams to not suspend so much disbelief, I plead with you to do the same. Do not scoff at these productions, continue to point out their flaws. Do suspend your disbelief in the negativity of these issues and notice that progress is being made.
Did you think that Hammerstein's portrayal of the arrogant superiority felt by the British over the Siamese at that point in history was inaccurate?
Was not the Second Act opener "Western People Funny" like a big wink to the audience from Hammerstein telling them that he knew whose culture was really the more foolish?
Hey guys, let's be nice here. This is a safe place.
John, thanks for sharing your thoughts with everyone. What are your thoughts about the recent My Fair Lady revival and the Once on this Island revival? Those two couldn't be more different from eachother, one is an old school classic that has been revived a number of times, and the other one is a bit more young, scrappy and hungry. How should we view those two shows?
joined:4/25/18
joined:
4/25/18
Posted: 4/25/18 at 10:10pm