Observation/Research Paper

The first theatrical comedy that I’ve ever experienced was Shevelove, Gelbart, and Sonheim’s A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum.

Comparing this farce to Larson’s six characteristics of theatre, the first characteristic “Theatre is like a dream:” the motivation for this play seems to be what comedy of errors is going to happen next? How are Pseudolus and the bumbling, very physical-comedy based Hysterium going to get out of the fire and back into the frying pan at Best! If the suspense of wondering how they are going to get out of it is the engine that propels this vehicle that is A Funny thing Happened on the way to the Forum, then comedy is at least the transmission and the drive shaft, the actual propulsion of the play. Comedy is what “moves the wheels” of this particular production. When I sat in seat 41-C at Furman theatre, I felt like I was in a dream. Here I was in this darkened space, elbow to elbow with the ladies on either side of me, with my knees buried into the back of the unfortunate gentleman in front of me; I felt enveloped by the experience, like within a dream. And the music…the music not only sets the mood of the experience, but it also sets the time of the play; from the song “Comedy Tonight” through to the finale “Finale Ultimo: Comedy Tonight,” the songs establish the boundaries of the temporal…the beginning and the end. The event program even gives the outline by song, rather than by setting or time of day. Although, the songs and dialog in between fill in the spaces between anticipation and the climax; the “dénouement,” if you will. I felt like I was perched in the cockpit of this play in this tiny theatre; the play went on “amongst us.” It was a very personal “actual” reality as opposed to an isolating “virtual” reality. Just like any comedy or tragedy happens to us in our lives…amongst us in our presence, and in the realities of our lives. This play did that and was like a dream in that it was suspended reality; realism and idealism merged.

The second characteristic of theatre is “We see our lives in the terms of the play:” Although this is a comic romp of sorts, there are very basic human conditions displayed in this play: love, lust, dissatisfaction, servitude, a desire for wealth and freedom, power, adoration, comedy…a desire to laugh. It is the same way in which we view the play that is our lives; we see it as a theatrical experience, the stuff that life is made of; “All the world’s a stage.” Even though all of these life elements are spoofed in A Funny Thing, they’re still very real elements of our human condition, therefore relatable.

As far as suspending our disbelief, the statement “Theatre is the process of seeing ourselves better” seems to be a contradiction. How can we suspend our disbelief, yet see ourselves better at the same time? Nevertheless, in reflecting upon my own experiences, seeing Pseudolus striving for freedom struck a cord in my own past. Trying to be free of a strenuous job, or a really bad boss, or a tedious relationship…I relate to his desire for freedom in my own way. Not in understanding his physical servitude, but in understanding the desire for liberty in many situations. Hysterium, too; with his neurotic desire to do his job effectively and efficiently, all the while being a bit of a brown-nose…I can relate to this as well. I have been known to pursue an “A” in a college course just as diligently as Hysterium strives to do his job completely, and also like him, I tend to really freak out when things keep going from bad to worse. However, I’d like to think that both he and I handle the pressure pretty well, even if we do have a fit first. Then there is Senex, the stodgy old patriarchal (yet brow-beaten) letch, and his expression of dissatisfaction with his current situation; that’s definitely a song in my emotional repertoire. How many times have I caved in and “Yes Dear-ed” in my life like Senex does?

Although these characters are two-dimensional fictional characters, that I know, intellectually, aren’t real, they strike a nerve. I can relate to them in the midst of my suspended disbelief. After watching this play, I did reflect upon these things, not so much during the play, as there was so much to take in at that time; the swift action, the bright color, the melodic spoken word, and the subtle and not-so-subtle humor…the courtesans. Ah yes, the courtesans. Sorry, I had a moment of reflection at the keyboard here. The play was really sensual, it worked my senses on different levels simultaneously. It was after I arrived home that I really thought about the play. I reflected on the plot and characterization, and the atmosphere of the theatre…and the courtesans, of course. Seriously, I tried to hold up a mirror to myself, and see my own experience through the roles in the play to make them a little more 3-D, to add flesh to the backbone of the work.

The fourth element, “Theatre as a forum for mystery:” In this performance, it was very mysterious to me because I knew nothing of the play in advance. I chose intentionally not to familiarize myself with the story because I wanted to be surprised. I am one of those weirdoes who won’t even glance at the inside cover of a novel before I read it, for fear that I will see something that will give away the ending. I prefer to go into things that please me with no prior knowledge. I enjoy the element of surprise, I suppose. Throughout this play, at times I felt like I was on a ride in an amusement park. It was beyond my control, I was just sitting there stage right observing, enmeshed, and waiting to see what was going to go wrong next.

The next element, “Theatre is always a social celebration:” I definitely felt that at Furman. It was a three-quarter thrust stage, enabling me to see the people stage left across from me and vice-versa. I made eye contact with some of the other members of the audience adjacent to me during the play at funny moments and we shared a laugh. I saw that they were “getting it,” and they saw that I was “getting it.” It was a very interesting experience. I felt camaraderie with these people that I had never even seen before, as well as with the six other Anderson College students that were there. Diversity was easily recognized around the room. There were old people, young people, people in various degrees of formality of dress; from jeans and shorts to suits and dresses…there were women and men, students and teachers, “normal” people and even a freak with facial piercings (whomever could that role have been played by?); and it is doubtful that most of us would ever meet socially except in that very theatre on that very night, and a great deal of us were having an awesome time. I only noticed one man who really didn’t seem to be enjoying himself. It was like a sporting event in that it was easy to get caught up in the atmosphere, in the excitement. I particularly like the thrust stage for this play, in that the actors were among us while they performed. I noticed the disparity between this play and Barefoot in the Park on a proscenium stage. On a proscenium, I felt alienated, merely a spectator, while on the thrust stage I felt a part of the play. I was an element to someone’s experience that night, just as the lady who sat across from me, who laughed with her whole body, face getting so red I thought she’d have a stroke, was an element of my experience. I enjoyed her enjoying the play, as well as enjoying it for myself. I shared in the experience, I was not just a witness to it.

The next element, “An excellent theatre always elicits an element of distrust:” In my own life and language, very little is taboo to discuss. I like humor of varying degrees of bawdiness, if I may use so archaic a word. So, for me, the fact that there were courtesans walking around “ha’f-nekkid,” to use a colloquialism from my homeland, or the fact that there was subject matter of adultery or off color humor was not a problem, in fact, I considered it an asset. However, I noticed that some people in the audience gasped a couple of times at some of the lines, and looked disdainfully towards certain young ladies of the house of Lycus who were really enjoying their role, playing a trollop with utmost grace yet individually maintaining her proper state of Jezebel-ness. Have I mentioned that I liked the courtesans? As a matter of fact, I decided to add “one (or 13, if I die wealthy) dancing harlot(s) wearing jingle bells performing at my funeral” into my last will and testament about midway through Act II. Anyway, I digress…some of the audience likely found their envelopes pushed slightly, seeing things and hearing humor they may not have wanted to be exposed to, but oh well. Isn’t that what “comedy” is? The ignoble; stupid things that stupid people do, very stereotypical and two-dimensional? Like in the French theatre, it was “bedroom farce” at times, a little risqué, but I think that’s part of what makes it work. The irony of having a virgin courtesan, and having the son of a rich Roman falling in love with said anomaly was a plus, too.

Things that stood out about this play to me was its seamless-ness; it flowed very well. Many of the characters were believable, especially Pseudolus and Hysterium. They made me feel that they were Pseudolus and Hysterium. The believability of these two overshadowed the “acting” of some others in the cast. As far as this play exceeding expectations, it definitely did its job. I would like to say that I had no expectations, but the truth is I had poor expectations. I really was not looking forward to paying $15 to sit in a tiny room for two-and-a-half hours watching a bunch of clowns in pajamas. However, In retrospect, I am completely thrilled that I have experienced this play. I was completely entertained. It was a positive influence on me and a motivation to try other plays. I hope to see A Funny Thing… again as well, to see how that set of actors portray the roles…especially the courtesans. If AC ever has DAVID LARSON PRESENTS A funny thing Happened on the way to the Forum (smile), please call (864) 964-0308 and allow me to cast the courtesans. I assure you that I will do well [reader feels laughter rising, smiles, rubs chin and decides to give student an “A” for effort, ignoring poor sentence structure and grammatical errors] (sometimes research papers can be artistic expressions, yes?).

This play has had a lot of success on Broadway including fourteen Tony Award nominations with nine wins. It also won an Oscar for “Scoring of Music Adaptation.” I was interested to discover while researching this play to see that the elements of the story were actually derived directly from a playwright named Titus Maccius (meaning literally, “clown”) Plautus who lived from 254-184 BCE. I looked him up in the text Theatre: The Lively Art. “(Plautus) …based almost all his comedies on Greek New Comedy, dealt exclusively with domestic situations, particularly the trials and tribulations of romance…Courtesans, lovers, and overbearing parents were also favorite characters. Most of the dialog was meant to be sung. Plautus’s comedies are farces, and they use such farcical techniques as mistaken identity”(Wilson and Goldfarb). Hmm, does this sound at all like any play that I have seen?

The original run of A Funny Thing… on Broadway starred Zero Mostel as Pseudolus and ran for 964 performances. Other modern actors who have acted in this play include Whoopie Goldberg, Nathan Lane (who won “Best Actor”--Tony, “Best Actor in a Musical”--Outer Critics Circle award, and “Best Actor in a Musical”—Drama Desk Award) , as well as comedian David Allan Grier from the comedy show “In Living Color.”

The director and artists who decide to tackle this production before a crowd definitely have big shoes to fill. But, hopefully, as long as there is still lust, still a desire for freedom…lot’s of courtesans (of course), and a sense of discontentment; this play will always prosper. So Mote it Be.

Works Consulted:

A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum. Burst! Media. 1997-1999.

[http://www.imagi-nation.com/moonstruck/albums/albm24.htm]

Sondheim.com. Hijinks Design. 1994-2002.

[http://www.sondheim.com]

Wilson, Edwin and Alvin Goldfarb. Theatre The Lively Art. McGraw Hill. Boston, Mass.

2002.

To be posted online @ http://www.oocities.org/dionysis72/papers.html