Drama Desk Award

Comedy, like every good theatrical performance, needs to engage the audience by evoking emotions based on what is shown on stage. However, a comical play calls for laughter, which tends to disengage audience’s attention from the play’s context. This self-contradictory nature of comedy seems to work against the aim of theater. This makes comedy a difficult theatrical art to work with because since it should find the right balance in its nature. Woodruff points out that “the paradox of comedy is…

Dionysia in the spring. The festivities were filled with drunken men sing, dancing, dressing up in goat skins, and competing with one another to see who could put on the best show (“Festivals and Theaters” n.pag). With this tradition rapidly spreading awards were handed out to the best performances. Hence, the Athenian theatre was born. In the blink of an eye, mass theaters were…

Fear, screams, and nightmares are what haunt military members after war. It’s called post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Eight percent of Americans have it, which results in twenty-four and a half million people. The Warriors is a play about PTSD by William P. Bradford and was performed at Trinity high school. The production was a reflection on PTSD combined with a plot line to make an interesting twist on a play. Coupled with the controversial topic is a spectacular set, amazing actors, and…

Comedy has been and always will be a classic genre of books, music, movies, and staged theatrical productions. Reckless by Craig Lucas is an example of a successful attempt at dark comedy. It makes light of hired assassinations, murder, accidental killing, and human psychology. I found this play to be hilarious. It reminded me of one of my favorite mottos: if you don’t laugh, you’ll cry. But what is it about this play that makes the comedy so successful? What occurs throughout the course of the…

away from the seriousness of sin or the word of God. How can you know the word of God if you cannot read or understand what is being said. This is where the Liturgy or moral plays would fit the order of teaching the word of God through action and drama. The moral plays of this period would help to bring people closer to the Christian religion. Before a lot of people illiterate or not couldn't understand what is being said. Now they could relate because they can self their self in the religion. I…

Comedy and tragedy are often two sides of the same coin, black and white in nature, but in the play Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf this nature becomes a messy storm of whether we’re supposed to laugh, cry, or both. When we started reading this play, I had no doubt in my mind that it was a comedy. The conversations between George and Martha were sometimes cruel, but I saw it as banter that’s often seen in long-term relationships. However, the class reacted in quite a different way from me, they…

Jack had his beanstalk, Paul Bunyan had his ax, and Bella, the tall tale legend of Kirsten Childs’ new musical “Bella: An American Tall story”, has her big posterior. Within the tradition of magical objects of epics and tall memories, Bella’s derriere is more than just a derriere: it’s a symbol of sexuality, racial identification, and vigor—and a consistent source of humor and amazement. In this creation by Dallas Theater center at the Wyly Theatre, directed by Robert O’Hara, Bella succeeds…

The Pioneer of Russia Without Alexander Ostrovsky, theatre today would be completely different. Ostrovsky was one of the most influential Russian playwrights; he developed a new style of realism, rooted in his personal experience, and propagated his innovative ideas through his educational endeavors and leadership in the dramatic community. Evidence of his impact can be seen both in the critical and popular acclaim he achieved in his lifetime and the ongoing influence of his work today.…

Mind over Matter Only the most intelligent people understand to what extent people are able to control their lives with their minds. In Man’s Search for Meaning by Vik E. Frankl, Jews in concentration camps use their minds to escape from their daily tortures. Meursault did not use his mind to control himself and paid the price in The Stranger by Albert Camus. The Wachowski brothers directed “The Matrix”, in which Neo used his mind to escape from the Matrix, and the Oracle tricked his mind in…

The play “Subterranean Homesick Blues Again”, written by Dennis Reardon is about two couples taking a tour in a cave by a tour guide who isn't just a tour guide. Reardon portrays that there is another side of the world that includes darkness and mysteries. In addition, the play was confusing, but amusing because the author adds in suspense throughout the play. The style of the play leaves readers with many questions. One question may be, why take random people to a cave to reveal eternal death?…