This play takes us back to 1871, to U-M’s first class of female students to enter into the exclusively-male student body. Written and directed by current U-M students, the play is based on both historical and fictional accounts of five female students as they work their way through the world attempting to assert themselves to their male counterparts, faculty, and the city of Ann Arbor itself.
The issue of women in male-dominated spheres remains an issue almost 150 years later. While U-M looks very different today, it’s revealing to look back at its origins to see how far we’ve come, as well as the bounds the University has left to make.
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February 10 and 11 at 8 pm, and February 12 at 2 pm
Harold Pinter’s No Man’s Land, is one of those plays so dense, I can’t hope to comprehend, let alone fully discuss, it after just one viewing. So instead, I will discuss impressions and musing brought on by seeing National Theatre Live’s production of No Man’s Land at Michigan Theater this weekend.
Any performance is enhanced by being under Michigan Theater’s gold gilded ceiling with the organ music playing as you take your seat; the setting creates a perfect mood for musing about the serious, but often simultaneously hilarious, questions about life, death, power, and vulnerability that Pinter’s play brings up. I went and saw the show with my parents, who had driven up for the day and wanted to spend some time in Ann Arbor. So as we sat in the audience, we were a remarkable reflection of the diversity of age in the cast.
Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen starred in the show as elder men, who eventually became contrasted with the two younger men who appear on the scene. Stewart and McKellen in a Q&A that was part of the taped broadcast, reminisced about seeing the original production as young men. Both have seen it multiple times and commented on the lasting impression it made. The other two actors in the cast either hadn’t even been born yet or were very very young at the time. The narrative explores themes of aging and in the cast they face large generation gaps; my parents and I watched, each coming to the show with different generational experiences. And we all got something out of it but I believe I could identify with the younger characters on a more personal level, while my parents identified with the stars. Independent of age, I think there is only so much I can identify with in a play about four men, contemplating manhood for two hours.
This was not for lack of familiarization or stunning performances by the actors. I greatly admire both Stewart and McKellen, both of whom were amazing in No Man’sLand, pivoting from hilarious to serious on the turn of a dime. They earned their reputations and then some in this language heavy, dialogue driven piece. If I were to sit and listen to it again, I’m sure there would be many moments or understandings I’ve missed, which ensures this play probably isn’t going to disappear from the stage anytime soon. The friendship that Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen present on stage (and in the below video) is wonderful to watch.
After having the Thursday performance cancelled due to illness and multiple phone calls attempting to exchange my ticket, I arrived at the Arthur Miller Theatre for Friday’s performance of Idiot-Syncrasy hoping it was worth all the trouble I took to get there. It was that and more.
At the end of the show, I turned to my friend and said, “I think that that is one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever seen”.
Photo Credit: Mady Martin
Walking in the doors, we were greeted with a sign stating “Attention: Bounce at Own Risk”. Littering the lobby were giant exercise bounce balls. What’s more, they were covered in costumes- there’s no other word for it; some were horses, unicorns, or dinosaurs that you bounced on. There was a bowl full of small bouncy balls for audience members to take and play with before the show. When taking our seats, we were intrigued and eager, but unsure what to expect.
Idiot-Syncrasy appears as a deceptively simple performance. When described to others, the premise sounds ridiculous: Two guys stand against a white drapes, on a white floor, and bounce. Quoting from UMS’ website: “The Urban Dictionary describes “idiotsyncracy” as “any method or procedure based in ritual or dogma that continues by force of momentum beyond the limits of common sense”’. So they’re right: the premise is nonsensical. But yet, it makes perfect sense.
Arriving on stage, Igor and Moreno looked actively around the audience, waiting in silence. With their stares they engaged every section of the house. And then they waited. Long after the murmuring and twittering of people arranging themselves in their seats had died down. As the title implies, the performance is full of moments that push and break our instinctual limits of an action. Then, between one breath and the next they began quietly to sing.
Another trademark of the show was the gradualness with which they moved and the slow rise of their actions’ momentum. It’s almost imperceptible if you stare, trying to catch when the change happens. Then, when you look at a different area of the stage for a second, when you look back you notice the change as if it was drastic and not the slow movement it was in reality. One moment they’re singing and tapping their feet, the next they are bouncing. And they never stop.
Photo Credit: Alicia Clarke
The physical and mental endurance it took to perform that hour long show, never stopping moving, most of it based in the repetitive up and down movement of jumping, is mind boggling. Though during the after show Q and A, they mentioned how the idea for bouncing came in relatively late in the creative process, this was the anchor for the performance that spoke to perseverance, the slow change it causes, the sense of momentum, and interweaving layers of meaning that this show explores.
There were beautiful moments where they held each other, leaning on each other, or revolved around each other in mesmerizing movements but there was also humor: The meticulous folding of their clothes after frequent quick changes, handing out red solo cups and Vernors to the entire audience- all done while bouncing mind you. This perfect blend of humor and perseverance, combined with their unabashed eye contact with the audience, created a true sense of intimacy. In the best way. It was devoid of the awkwardness that audiences normally feel when the fourth wall is broken and they are forced to engage with the performer- I didn’t feel uncomfortable when he was standing inches from me, bouncing, looking intently. I felt apart of what was happening and it was powerful. And that is what made it beautiful.
For more work by Igor and Moreno, check out their website.
Ian McKellen and Patrick Stewart were staple figures from my childhood fascination with film and good stories. Home from school one day, sick with one thing or another, I binge watched all three Lord of the Rings movies featuring Ian McKellen as Gandalf. It was epic.
Patrick Stewart was first known to me for his role in Star Trek: The Next Generation and later as Professor X of the X-Men movies, where I was reintroduced to McKellen as the villain, Magneto. They are a dynamic actor duo, both actors who I greatly admire and whose impact reaches beyond just acting as both are activists in their own right.
Though my first introductions to these men came through their roles in film, they were both originally theatre actors- each spending a significant amount of time at the Royal Shakespeare Company. On Sunday, January 15th, Michigan Theater in partnership with National Theatre Live is broadcasting Ian McKellen’s and Patrick Stewart’s performance of Harold Pinter’s No Man’s Land. The play follows an evening of drinking and storytelling between two writers, Hirst and Spooner, in this comedic classic about power.
“We started with wanting to change the world with a performance. We felt like idiots.”
And so was born Igor and Moreno’s “Idiot-Syncrasy”. They premiered the piece in 2015 at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, a renowned festival for exploration in performance and creativity, and haven’t stopped dancing for joy since. Literally. After opening by singing a folk song from the Basque Country, Igor and Moreno bounce for the entire rest of the work. Perhaps they won’t change the world but their performance speaks to the idea of perseverance and empowerment.
Sound different, sound interesting? They are coming to Ann Arbor THIS week at the Arthur Miller Theatre. Don’t miss out!
But if you can’t make the performances or the cold is keeping you from traveling to North Campus, you still might have chance to experience “Idiot-Syncrasy”. Saturday evening there will be a free livestream of the performance. Click to find out more.
And the fun doesn’t stop there: Thursday on their opening night, there is a pre-performance talk at 7pm and Q&A after the performance. So grab your tickets quickly!
Details:
Dates: THURSDAY, JANUARY 12, 2017 7:30 PM
FRIDAY, JANUARY 13, 2017 8:00 PM
SATURDAY, JANUARY 14, 2017 8:00 PM
Where: ARTHUR MILLER THEATRE
I don’t think a show can go wrong when there’s pirates in it, I found myself telling my friend before the opening of Peter and the Starcatcher this past weekend. There are many examples to back up this claim: Pirates of Penzance, Pirates of the Caribbean (I’m still waiting for a stage version of this), and of course, Peter Pan. Let’s be honest, it’s all very cool when the children fly across the stage for the first time in Peter Pan, but the pirates first entrance can just about steal the show.
UofM’s Department of Theatre and Drama’s production of Peter and the Starcatcher lived up to my pirate filled expectations. Jeffrey James Fox as Black Stache and Jack Alberts as Slank battled it out for my favorite- literally, as they have a captain’s “boxing” match near the end of the first act. Each was an energetic and attention-grabbing seafarer. Eventually, we learn that Black Stache, who will go on to become the legendary Captain Hook, really just wants a hero to fight against; a true partnership, if you will. He searches the whole show for such an adversary and finally finds it in the boy he dubs Peter, an orphan.
But the show wouldn’t move along without Molly; a character strikingly similar to her daughter Wendy, but with more gumption than her overtly feminine successor that the audience knows from Peter Pan. Played by Kourtney Bell, who played a spritely and eager apprentice starcatcher, Molly marches about declaring herself the leader. Through her many adventures with Peter and the boys, she ultimately fulfills her mission and is made a full starcatcher. But the adventures are not without their price, as Molly and Peter must part ways. The next time she catches a glimpse of him as he’s flying off to Neverland with her daughter.
Peter and the Starcatcher is a lovely little prequel and the Department of Theatre and Drama put on an enjoyable production. One of my favorite parts was how physical the show is; actors became different parts of the ship. One moment they’re crawling along the floor with a toy boat to show the ship’s course and the next they are lifting and tumbling Peter up and around as he’s thrown overboard- the ensemble becomes the sea itself. It made the transitions seamless and fascinating to watch. The first act takes place on a boat and the second act on an island, the soon to be Neverland, but regardless of where the show is, it was full of anachronisms- which were hilarious instead of disappointing. The intentional way in which they were placed throughout the show- an eggbeater as a microphone, foam noodles for swords- were delivered and incorporated nicely by the actors with an air of “we know you know that this doesn’t belong in a play during Queen Victoria’s reign but…we’re using it anyway”. I laughed often as Peter and the Starcatcher flew to success at the Power Center this past weekend!
