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I'm so excited for spring break!
Saturday, March 21, 2009
Monday, March 09, 2009
Now is Not for Denial
The idea that there is little room for improvement in theater is troubling. It carelessly dismisses the idea that we can expand the scope of Harvard theater to include more people and communities than are already involved. Expanding the theater base at Harvard will lead to a more dynamic theatrical community and more dynamic theater.
In an op-ed published March 9th, “The New Era is Now[1],” Benjamin Glaser ’09 argues against the need for progressively reforming Harvard’s theater scene. While I agree that Harvard theater is relatively egalitarian and open for all students, history and experience show that being egalitarian and open is not enough. I believe that with some serious consideration and a few minor reforms, the theatrical experience at Harvard can be brought to new levels of innovation and artistic creativity, while at the same time increasing its relevance and relationship with new audiences and communities.
Glaser alleges that socially conscious theater stifles “artistic dialogue to the censorship of political correctness.” In my opinion, socially conscious theater and theater are one and the same. What else do plays do but speak to the human and social conditions of the people that write, perform, and watch these shows? To deny the relationship of most plays and social conditions is to deny the essence of what makes theater, and art in general, such a powerful force in analyzing, interpreting, and shaping society.
A misunderstanding arises from the belief that I am espousing the idea of casting actors by their race through my reference to “fresh faces” in theater. That is false. While I believe in including more people in Harvard theater, there are ways to encourage theatrical diversity at Harvard without resorting to a form of social engineering. In the op-ed[2] Glaser was responding to, I wrote that “I do not wish for a theatrical bent of affirmative action.” Simple things such as developing more community theater groups and organizations at Harvard can significantly and economically increase the diversity of Harvard theater.
I am critical of Harvard theater in its current form because I believe it can be improved. A substantive discussion, rather than casual dismissal, may explicate a few solutions. One of the major problems of Harvard theater is that there is too much demand for too few spaces. In the play that I directed last semester, The Laramie Project, a hundred people auditioned for only fifteen slots. When I took an acting class sophomore year at Harvard, nearly sixty people auditioned for twenty slots—for a beginning acting course! With so many people expressing interest in being involved in theater, it is tragic that we allow so many to fall through the cracks when we have the ability—nay, the responsibility—to do something about it.
It would be a huge step forward if we could organize a community group at Harvard that allows anyone interested in theater to explore theater. This group would not be hindered by physical limitations of existing performance spaces, and would also not be stopped by the economic limitations of hiring more faculty. By virtue of offering this opportunity for all students to remain or become involved with theater, you will increase the diversity of theater at Harvard and the talent pool from which these shows can reach into to cast their shows.
Simply denying the need for anything more than an egalitarian method of casting, is unacceptable. As the Report of the Task Force of the Arts at Harvard stipulates[3], “the arts—as they are both experienced and practiced—are irreplaceable instruments of knowledge.” We have a duty to ensure that everyone at Harvard who desires has access to the theater and we also have a duty to keep pushing the boundaries of our art.
There is almost always room for improvement. I am asking people like Glaser to not be satisfied by the current state of affairs. In the process, we may come up with something that improves the theatrical community at Harvard without compromising our artistic standards and expectations.
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