I don't argue that as a play Salome has problems (I've seen it done not so
well, too, and believe me, there's no margin with language like that). It is
a fascinating play, all the same, and much more interesting than the
soft-core porn angle might suggest - really it's about chasteness, and how
the gaze projects its own inadmissable desires on the other, and corrupts
what it desires.
A play is however only one aspect of a production, and in Berkoff's
production the language was realised as theatrical language - by which I
mean physical, embodied, dynamic, live language - with a commitment and
precision that allowed Wilde's poetic its full expression. It's hard to
achieve, but when it's done well, nothing matches language like that: it
truly make the hair stand upright. And yes, the experience is a raw one,
because what it impels to the surface of consciousness - in the _audience_ -
is the true rawness of feeling. It takes a great deal of art and
sophistication to achieve that kind of experience.
Last night I saw an astounding production of Wedekind's Spring Awakening,
another play dealing with sexual transgression that is expressed in extreme
language and states. The Victorian College of the Arts is turning out these
young graduates who have the physical and vocal skills to cope with complex
language, and who are then absolutely fearless in their imaginative and
emotional expression. (Some of these graduates recently made a Dogme film of
Hamlet, filmed at night in various street locations around Melbourne with
some very good actors (I have seen a half hour preview, plus the original
production) which looks to me as if it ranks with the best Hamlets I've seen
- seriously. I simply can't wait to see the whole film when it premieres at
the Melbourne International Film Festival. These and other events make
Melbourne a very exciting place to be at the moment.)
Walking out last night, I reflected what a potential disaster Spring
Awakening could be (well, there's the Broadway musical for a start) if
realised with less skill and less than complete commitment. It's not simply
about audience. In the theatre, the audience is a literal, not an imagined
thing - if the audience is indifferent to what's on stage, it's very clear.
That has both positive and negative aspects. The risk an artist takes is not
imagined, but quite palpably evident, and the courage it requires to act (in
all senses) is also palpable. That's an inner question, of course, not only
for the artists involved, but also the audience. Recognition and response is
also active. That's as true for poetry of course as it is for theatre.
All best
A
On 6/8/07, Mark Weiss <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>
>
> Salome, by the way, was a favorite subject for soft-core paintings in
> the late 19th century, and Wilde could not have failed to see some of
> them. He also almost certainly knew Mallarme's Herodiade, published
> the same year as the play but in circulation among literary types for
> years before. It's one of Mallarme's few unconvincing poems, selon moi.
>
> Mark
>
>
>
--
Editor, Masthead: http://www.masthead.net.au
Blog: http://theatrenotes.blogspot.com
Home page: http://www.alisoncroggon.com
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