We the Family: Response to a Live Theatre Event
Leaving this production I was very drawn back due to the ending of the play being very much elevated in tone from the rest of the play. This was done very well by the director and playwright, by creating an ending which wraps up most of the character’s storylines, most of which ended in death; while leaving an open ended satisfying ending for the two young girls. The message I got from this play was that it doesn’t matter what family you come from, there are always expectations within a family on its members, and they will more than frequent be there to disappoint. The best one can do is forgive.
Throughout the play there are constant examples, plot-wise, which support this including the many …show more content…
Of course with a dark comedy it is not for everyone. As for myself I thought seeing these very big, cartoonish stereotypes on stage in these various situations was in its essence, funny, difficult to relate to, but funny. I’m not a big fan of a style of comedy which greatly leans on shock value, but more so the juxtaposition is what I found more humorous. For example, a small old delusional Jewish woman loudly protesting a school for a Muslim teacher is hilarious, as well the two most unlikely characters to team-up, a gothic Asian teenager and an old Jewish grandfather, who commit various crimes of smoking pot, dealing drugs and committing insurance fraud through arson. These two were my personal favourite characters due to their quick wit and charm. While the shock value of the father’s murderous plans were both predictable and not very funny. Although one piece of shock-humor I found very effective was the two daughters getting physical on-stage. This made a perfect uncomfortableness and tension in the audience, which is broken by the two actresses’ witty, uncomfortable banter.
The actors of We the Family did an excellent job of establishing relationships immediately through their body language. An example of this being scene with the father and mother of the groom. The actor playing the father did an excellent job of being bigger, both vocally and physically, than the mother’s character. Inversely, the
Leaving this production I was very drawn back due to the ending of the play being very much elevated in tone from the rest of the play. This was done very well by the director and playwright, by creating an ending which wraps up most of the character’s storylines, most of which ended in death; while leaving an open ended satisfying ending for the two young girls. The message I got from this play was that it doesn’t matter what family you come from, there are always expectations within a family on its members, and they will more than frequent be there to disappoint. The best one can do is forgive.
Throughout the play there are constant examples, plot-wise, which support this including the many …show more content…
Of course with a dark comedy it is not for everyone. As for myself I thought seeing these very big, cartoonish stereotypes on stage in these various situations was in its essence, funny, difficult to relate to, but funny. I’m not a big fan of a style of comedy which greatly leans on shock value, but more so the juxtaposition is what I found more humorous. For example, a small old delusional Jewish woman loudly protesting a school for a Muslim teacher is hilarious, as well the two most unlikely characters to team-up, a gothic Asian teenager and an old Jewish grandfather, who commit various crimes of smoking pot, dealing drugs and committing insurance fraud through arson. These two were my personal favourite characters due to their quick wit and charm. While the shock value of the father’s murderous plans were both predictable and not very funny. Although one piece of shock-humor I found very effective was the two daughters getting physical on-stage. This made a perfect uncomfortableness and tension in the audience, which is broken by the two actresses’ witty, uncomfortable banter.
The actors of We the Family did an excellent job of establishing relationships immediately through their body language. An example of this being scene with the father and mother of the groom. The actor playing the father did an excellent job of being bigger, both vocally and physically, than the mother’s character. Inversely, the