Review: The Normal Heart
So I went to the staged reading of "The Normal Heart" by Larry Kramer yesterday - and it was really good! :-D Most of the time you didn't even notice it was a staged reading instead of a normal play because the actors very fantastic! (And well, they did play properly most of the time. Not just sitting there reading...)
For those (most?) of you not familiar with the play let me give you a brief introduction: "The Normal Heart" is a play about the onset of AIDS in the 80s and about a group of gay activists trying to understand this disease, contain the spread of it and inform the public. To make it more dramatic, the activists of course don't agree on their course of action and have lots of fights about how to proceed with their work. And of course several characters die...
As you might have guessed it was a very emotional play. The actors did a really great job in portraying all the emotions from anger to fear to love and in carrying the audience. There was a lot of shouting as many of the characters fell apart under pressure, but also many quiet scenes. I think the play (and the actors of course) really managed to show three-dimensional characters who disagreed with each other but were never painted as black or white in their opinion. It was rather sad, obviously, and I think there were some people in the audience crying (not me!) when one of the beloved main characters died. But in my opinion, it felt more inspiring than sad. These characters were fighting for a cause they believed in and I don't know about you, but for me that's always inspiring to try and change something myself. I don't know much about the gay movement, actually, apart from what I see in fandoms and on tumblr, but it was really interesting to see some of its historical side. Oh, and somehow the play managed to be quite humorous in its dialogue - at least sometimes, but it always felt like a much needed break in all the tragedy.
If I had one criticism, it'd be that the play was too straight forward. I mean I might not have guessed everything right from the beginning, but as soon as it happened it was clear nothing else could have happened. I think I would have liked a few more twists... But then I suppose the story wasn't about twists... And sometimes (and I never thought I'd say that!) I felt like the play was too character-driven. I usually prefer character-driven stories to plot-driven ones, but here I sometimes would've like to leave the main protagonists behind to see what else was going on. Like they tried for most of the play to arrange a meeting with the mayor and finally in the end they do succeed to get one - but we don't really see how. All we see are a few angsty monologues of the protagonist and heated discussions and then suddenly they have this meeting. So obviously the climate (or something in the background) changed, but we don't get to see it. But I understand that leaving the main characters is even more difficult in a theatre play than it is in a movie or novel... And I do like character-driven stories, so most of the time I didn't mind.
So yeah, I really did like the play. I think if I could I'd see it again to catch all the subtleties. And for those of you interested, have a video with the highlights of the Broadway production of "The Normal Heart" to get an idea of what I was talking about all the time:
[Behind the spoiler cut for size]
What was really interesting, too, was the venue of the play. Now, since it wasn't a "normal" play but rather a staged reading (which you mostly didn't notice as I said...), it was in a very small venue. Or lets say really tiny! There were a few tables people could sit at and then there was the stage, like one meter from the last table and barely elevated. I sat in the second row and was about two metres from the stage. Very tiny, very cosy, very familiar atmosphere. Talking about familiar, the audience consisted of maybe 20 people and I got the very distinct feeling that everybody knew each other - apart from me obviously... Since all (most?) of the actor were from the "Tarzan" cast, I suppose they all knew each other and thus their friends and family (which I suspected the audience to be) knew each other, too. Well, I don't know about most of you, but being the only strange person in a room full of people who all know each other isn't exactly my favourite thing in the world... Talk about feeling awkward! On the other hand, it did lead to a very nice atmosphere in general...
Now on to the fangirling part. :-D Since the setting was so small and familiar, it felt natural that all the actors were just walking around the audience, talking to people they knew. (Well, before and after the play and during the break. Obviously not during the play!) So did John. He saw me before the play started - and recognized me and greeted me! :-D That was really nice! :-D (I suppose it was only because it's only been a week since I've been to the stage door...) It did help me not to feel totally awkward because I could pretend I kind of knew someone, too... ;-)
During the play... Well, he did play very well (even though he had to look at his script a lot - which is totally okay in a staged reading!), but I don't really want to single him out since all the other actors were fantastic, too! In my (completely unbiased :-P) opinion, John was the most handsome, though. And it might not only have been me thinking that because he had been cast as the main protagonist's younger lover... ;-)
(As a side note: watching a kissing scene in a small room from a distance of about two metres is very different from watching it on a big stage... *coughs*)
After the play was over, everybody just stayed, talking to each other and waiting for the actors to join them. I did hang around for a while, too. Again feeling awkward since I was the only person who didn't know anybody... Sometimes I so wish to be someone to make new acquaintances more easily! Just when I was about to leave, I did run into John Vooijs again and he felt obliged to exchange a few words with me. It was only a very brief chat, but I think it was really nice of him! :-) He did ask me whether I could understand the play well, though (because it was in English), which I found somewhat hilarious. I think he's judging me to be MUCH younger than I actually am. To be fair, I suppose I'm not really acting my age when I go into fangirl mode... Anyway, the conversation was much less awkward than it could have been, considering that we'd met on the way to the bathroom... XD
I did feel like all the people who knew each other were going to go out together after the play. I don't really know whether I would've liked to join them - on the one hand it could've meant hanging out with John, on the other hand it still would've been me in a group of people where everybody knew each other except for me... But I decided that it would definitely have been me overstepping my fangirl boundaries. And I already felt stalkery enough... So yeah, I just went home. I think that was the right thing to do, don't you?
Anyway, tonight I'm going to see John's final show at "Tarzan". It does feel a bit of an overkill to see him a second day in a row, but I already have my ticket and I'm sure I'll enjoy it. :-) I'm having some doubts about going to the stage door again afterwards. On the one hand, it'd be nice especially since it's his last show. On the other hand, well, creepy stalker fangirl? Since he apparently recognizes me now, he really must think I have nothing else to do. And I have nothing new to say... And I kind of want my other time (which cost me so much courage!) to be something special... Well, I think I'll decide spontaneously. But am I wondering a bit whether I'm the only one overthinking what kind of fangirl image I'm projecting... Or do other people do that, too? I mean, I just really like him (and I mean liking in a friend-ish way - sometimes you just find someone really likeable, right?). If he was someone I knew through mutual acquaintances, we could easily become friends I suppose. (I mean, I don't know whether he'd like me, but I usually am very likeable. :-P) But somehow that's not possible as soon as the social starting position is fan/object (subject? Which is correct English here?) of fandom, right? Yeah, sometimes I feel I'm overthinking social norms and then I get all confused and don't know what to do or say anymore...
For those (most?) of you not familiar with the play let me give you a brief introduction: "The Normal Heart" is a play about the onset of AIDS in the 80s and about a group of gay activists trying to understand this disease, contain the spread of it and inform the public. To make it more dramatic, the activists of course don't agree on their course of action and have lots of fights about how to proceed with their work. And of course several characters die...
As you might have guessed it was a very emotional play. The actors did a really great job in portraying all the emotions from anger to fear to love and in carrying the audience. There was a lot of shouting as many of the characters fell apart under pressure, but also many quiet scenes. I think the play (and the actors of course) really managed to show three-dimensional characters who disagreed with each other but were never painted as black or white in their opinion. It was rather sad, obviously, and I think there were some people in the audience crying (not me!) when one of the beloved main characters died. But in my opinion, it felt more inspiring than sad. These characters were fighting for a cause they believed in and I don't know about you, but for me that's always inspiring to try and change something myself. I don't know much about the gay movement, actually, apart from what I see in fandoms and on tumblr, but it was really interesting to see some of its historical side. Oh, and somehow the play managed to be quite humorous in its dialogue - at least sometimes, but it always felt like a much needed break in all the tragedy.
If I had one criticism, it'd be that the play was too straight forward. I mean I might not have guessed everything right from the beginning, but as soon as it happened it was clear nothing else could have happened. I think I would have liked a few more twists... But then I suppose the story wasn't about twists... And sometimes (and I never thought I'd say that!) I felt like the play was too character-driven. I usually prefer character-driven stories to plot-driven ones, but here I sometimes would've like to leave the main protagonists behind to see what else was going on. Like they tried for most of the play to arrange a meeting with the mayor and finally in the end they do succeed to get one - but we don't really see how. All we see are a few angsty monologues of the protagonist and heated discussions and then suddenly they have this meeting. So obviously the climate (or something in the background) changed, but we don't get to see it. But I understand that leaving the main characters is even more difficult in a theatre play than it is in a movie or novel... And I do like character-driven stories, so most of the time I didn't mind.
So yeah, I really did like the play. I think if I could I'd see it again to catch all the subtleties. And for those of you interested, have a video with the highlights of the Broadway production of "The Normal Heart" to get an idea of what I was talking about all the time:
[Behind the spoiler cut for size]
Click to viewWhat was really interesting, too, was the venue of the play. Now, since it wasn't a "normal" play but rather a staged reading (which you mostly didn't notice as I said...), it was in a very small venue. Or lets say really tiny! There were a few tables people could sit at and then there was the stage, like one meter from the last table and barely elevated. I sat in the second row and was about two metres from the stage. Very tiny, very cosy, very familiar atmosphere. Talking about familiar, the audience consisted of maybe 20 people and I got the very distinct feeling that everybody knew each other - apart from me obviously... Since all (most?) of the actor were from the "Tarzan" cast, I suppose they all knew each other and thus their friends and family (which I suspected the audience to be) knew each other, too. Well, I don't know about most of you, but being the only strange person in a room full of people who all know each other isn't exactly my favourite thing in the world... Talk about feeling awkward! On the other hand, it did lead to a very nice atmosphere in general...
Now on to the fangirling part. :-D Since the setting was so small and familiar, it felt natural that all the actors were just walking around the audience, talking to people they knew. (Well, before and after the play and during the break. Obviously not during the play!) So did John. He saw me before the play started - and recognized me and greeted me! :-D That was really nice! :-D (I suppose it was only because it's only been a week since I've been to the stage door...) It did help me not to feel totally awkward because I could pretend I kind of knew someone, too... ;-)
During the play... Well, he did play very well (even though he had to look at his script a lot - which is totally okay in a staged reading!), but I don't really want to single him out since all the other actors were fantastic, too! In my (completely unbiased :-P) opinion, John was the most handsome, though. And it might not only have been me thinking that because he had been cast as the main protagonist's younger lover... ;-)
(As a side note: watching a kissing scene in a small room from a distance of about two metres is very different from watching it on a big stage... *coughs*)
After the play was over, everybody just stayed, talking to each other and waiting for the actors to join them. I did hang around for a while, too. Again feeling awkward since I was the only person who didn't know anybody... Sometimes I so wish to be someone to make new acquaintances more easily! Just when I was about to leave, I did run into John Vooijs again and he felt obliged to exchange a few words with me. It was only a very brief chat, but I think it was really nice of him! :-) He did ask me whether I could understand the play well, though (because it was in English), which I found somewhat hilarious. I think he's judging me to be MUCH younger than I actually am. To be fair, I suppose I'm not really acting my age when I go into fangirl mode... Anyway, the conversation was much less awkward than it could have been, considering that we'd met on the way to the bathroom... XD
I did feel like all the people who knew each other were going to go out together after the play. I don't really know whether I would've liked to join them - on the one hand it could've meant hanging out with John, on the other hand it still would've been me in a group of people where everybody knew each other except for me... But I decided that it would definitely have been me overstepping my fangirl boundaries. And I already felt stalkery enough... So yeah, I just went home. I think that was the right thing to do, don't you?
Anyway, tonight I'm going to see John's final show at "Tarzan". It does feel a bit of an overkill to see him a second day in a row, but I already have my ticket and I'm sure I'll enjoy it. :-) I'm having some doubts about going to the stage door again afterwards. On the one hand, it'd be nice especially since it's his last show. On the other hand, well, creepy stalker fangirl? Since he apparently recognizes me now, he really must think I have nothing else to do. And I have nothing new to say... And I kind of want my other time (which cost me so much courage!) to be something special... Well, I think I'll decide spontaneously. But am I wondering a bit whether I'm the only one overthinking what kind of fangirl image I'm projecting... Or do other people do that, too? I mean, I just really like him (and I mean liking in a friend-ish way - sometimes you just find someone really likeable, right?). If he was someone I knew through mutual acquaintances, we could easily become friends I suppose. (I mean, I don't know whether he'd like me, but I usually am very likeable. :-P) But somehow that's not possible as soon as the social starting position is fan/object (subject? Which is correct English here?) of fandom, right? Yeah, sometimes I feel I'm overthinking social norms and then I get all confused and don't know what to do or say anymore...