OUR TOWN (Voice Theatre)****

 

By Louise

Link for Act 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sEnMLY7-0LA&t=4s

Link for Acts 2&3 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ykKB6E6H-B8

Available until: Indefinitely

One problem with producing plays on Zoom is that it’s there’s no stage. Some theatre companies like The Show Must Go Online and Shakespeare’s Happy Hours have got around this problem really well, but there are probably some plays where having a shared space really matters.

But there are also some plays which suit Zoom especially well. Our Town by Thornton Wilder is meant to have a bare stage, so there’s not a very big jump to having no stage at all. There are also a lot of entrances and exits which are much easier when all you have to do is switch off your Zoom camera.

There are still a few problems. There are sometimes scenes taking place at the same time, so it can be difficult to know which characters are part of which scene so when a character says something, it’s not always clear who can hear it, but mostly, you can work it out.

Our Town is an unusual play. The cast includes a Stage Manager who is a sort of narrator and also plays small roles during the play. The actor (there isn’t a cast list) is very good. The Stage Manager is a bit detached from the main action and isn’t obviously emotionally affected by what he sees, but he seems compassionate and non-judgemental. I have an idea about who he is, but I don’t want to say in case you don’t know the play.

Our Town made me think of reality TV programmes, which often have a spoken introduction to explain what is happening before we’re shown the action. Our Town even has a professor who is brought in to give his expert opinion. But in some ways, it is very different from reality TV – and a lot more realistic. The characters are ordinary people, going through their lives. The Stage Manager plays various roles, but he doesn’t manipulate the action. I think this is quite close to the original idea when reality TV was invented. This play shows how interesting ordinary people can be and that there are many different kinds of ordinary people.

One thing I noticed is that a lot of characters have private opinions and public opinions. For example, there is a character who drinks too much and when someone who hasn’t known him for very long is worried about this, she is told there is nothing to worry about and he’s actually much better than he used to be. But when the characters who said there wass nothing to worry about go home to their families, they admit that actually, they’re very worried and the situation is worse than ever. Some people would call this fake. I think it’s loyalty. I think sometimes it’s possible to be too loyal, but it is a good quality to have.

I think the idea of what you see and what is kept hidden is really important in this play. Firstly, we only see what the Stage Manager allows us to see. Secondly, there are scenes when the characters wonder if the way they do things is correct, but they do it anyway. At the end, one of the characters has an opportunity but is advised against it because of a general belief that it’s better not to know certain things.

My favourite character is Emily. She is dreamy and romantic and she feels freer to show her emotions than the other characters. Her happiness, sadness and fears are really convincingly-acted. Her boyfriend George is really lovely too. He is very sensitive and he cares about people and the actor makes him very likeable and I think he and Emily are a very good couple. You can see the chemistry between them, even when they are trying to find out how the other person feels without giving their own feelings away.

It is really sad that so many of the other characters think it’s bad for a man to show his emotions, but it is normal for the time when Our Town is set and a lot of people feel the same way now. It isn’t right and I hope everyone will change their minds, but Our Town shows it’s possible to have an opinion like that and still be a nice person. The actors who criticise George for being sensitive do really well at saying things I disagree with in a kind and supportive way.

Mrs Gibbs (George’s mum) seems at first like a positive person who refuses to see the negatives, but as we watch the play, we learn more about her and she is a very interesting character. Doctor Gibbs is quite strict and not good at listening, but there is a lot more to him too. Mrs Webb (Emily’s mum) seems relaxed and fun, but she’s actually as caught up in conventions as the rest of them. Mr Webb seems that way too, but he says something revealing later on. This is a good play for showing you not to judge on first impressions.

I like George’s sister Rebecca too. She is very curious about the world and what she does later suggests she keeps questioning the things which are believed to be right. I think it’s really important to ask questions and try new things.