"Marisol" proves another School of Theater success

Photo courtesy of The Post

I recently posted a video showcasing the behind the scenes aspects of putting on the School of Theater’s production, “Marisol,” written by Jose Rivera. I finally got the chance last Thursday to see the show in its entirely, and was thoroughly impressed.

The show was set in New York City at a time where the “global body” was sick. Apples and coffee were extinct and people were being murdered in the streets.

It was an apocalyptic scenario, and the guardian angels of the world were planning an uprising against a “senile” god. You can read more about the plot in this New York Times review from 1993, when the play premiered in New York City.

The School of Theater never fails to put on a great show. The costumes were great, the set amazing and the acting was above par as usual.

I’ve seen countless School of Theater productions since coming to OHIO and something that stands out to me is the energy between the characters. Growing up in theater, I’ve seen and taken part in a lot of shows that have individually dynamic characters but together they simply clash. The relationships, close or otherwise, in School of Theater productions, are consistently believable and stand out.

What I really love about seeing live theater is how it forces you to collectively experience things with other members of the audience. I love listening to the people beside me whispering about what’s happening on stage, and even chime in every once in a while.

I also love when theater addresses current and relevant issues, which is often, but it’s particularly great when several days after the show you are still trying to wrap your head around the ideas.

“Marisol” was a very dense show and boggled my mind. Luckily for me, my instructor for Voice and Speech Training, Casiha Felt, just happened to play the lead role in “Marisol” and let us ask questions about the show in class on Tuesday. It was neat hearing others' opinions of the show and I loved hearing Casiha’s point of view.

I think most plays and art forms in general are supposed to be interpreted however the audiences sees them, but for me this does not necessarily mean only one audience member’s interpretation. What’s so great about being on a college campus is the fact that I know a lot of the students who are frequent theatergoers and therefore have the opportunity to discuss it with them. I look at every opinion as a way to broaden my understanding of the particular piece.

I encourage you to take in as much art as you can, because I think it helps you make sense of the world and what is going on around you. In this particular show, a main theme was addressing the fact that people tend to avert personal responsibility because they think a higher power will take care of everything, Jose Rivera makes the point that we must take responsibility into our own hands and not sit back and “watch the world burn” in the case of “Marisol.” This really hit home for me in the aftermath of the recent earthquakes in Haiti and Chile, because it seems that sometimes we turn our heads and pretend that others don’t need our help, when in fact there is so much more we can do.

These are only my opinions--I would love to hear what YOU think.