DramaLit Blog 1.0: BU School of Theatre

SO… on Friday  night, I went to The House of Blues and saw this incredible band called “Fitz and the Tantrums.” You may know them from their breakout hit, “Moneygrabber,” which is burning up the radio a little bit right now. This experience was notable for multiple reasons: 1. I felt like a real, live, 21-year-old college student living in Boston by going to a concert on a Friday night with a non-CFA friend. 2. I made a conscious effort (bought tickets in advance, took a cab, made a dinner reservation) to see art without it feeling like a duty/obligation/chore. 3. It got me thinking about how every type of performance might ultilize similar if not the same elements as actors use in theatrical performance.

Okay, so to speak to point 1: I just find it easy to forget that I’m young and I live in a vibrant city where cool things happen everyday, and it’s easy for me to get caught up in the SOT because of our schedule. I’m not complaining–I’m paying to be here and to be trained in a conservatory-style environment–but it is so rad to have a Friday free every once in a while.

Point 2: I’ve been finding myself in a disturbing pattern (with these posts, as well) wherein thinking about/talking about/seeing/experiencing art feels obligatory. Like, “OH GOD I SHOULD see that show/exhibit/what-have-you because if I don’t, I’m not doing my JOB.” Well, let me just say to myself and all y’all: Uh-uh. That ain’t right. First of all, I love art–theatre, visual, music–and it feeds my soul to experience it. So why do I resist it? I could blame over-saturation, i.e. being immersed in art all day/night for most of my time, but again, aren’t I paying for that? Why is it so easy for me to turn a trip to the MFA or BCA into a chore? I’ve been using the gym analogy a lot lately, it seems, but it works: Why do I resist with every bone in my body going to the gym, when, after every visit, I feel GREAT?! And, when did seeking out art become like the gym? Is it because I know I should? Because I know it’s “good for me”? Is that okay? I’m wrestling. At the beginning of the semester, on my big staples calendar on my desk, I wrote out my goals, and most of them included “gym-like” activities: cleaning my room and doing laundry AT LEAST once a week, eating healthier, …going to the gym, doing my work at my desk and ahead of time…etc. So, is it okay that I’m blocking my time up like this? And, even more important, is it okay that seeing art is becoming a bullet-point on my “TO-DO” list? Is collecting/seeing/experiencing/seeking out art a muscle you have to exercise that will eventually be strong enough to not even give a second thought to?!

3. I was completely entranced by these two. They were flirtatious, funny, angry, sorrowful, regretful, lost, joyous, scorned, etc. etc. etc. with ABANDON! They did everything they were doing, and fully. And let me just say, Noelle Scaggs plays a mean tambourine, and she plays it like she means it. So, as they sang to us and to each other, I couldn’t help but notice how strong their intentions were–when they were seducing each other, they were seducing each other, when they were inviting us, they were inviting us, etc. etc.–and how they went after their objectives so strongly! (THEATRE NERD!) And I was wondering, was it purposeful, or did it flow freely from them? And, if it was purposeful, they are the best actors I’ve ever seen perform. If it wasn’t, how do I bring that sense of ease, urgency, assuredness, confidence, and strength to my acting? It’s a weird rant/connection, and it might not make sense, but it got me thinking.

Also, check these guys out, they’re incredible. Also also, let me know how you feel about this gym/art debate/analogy. Do you feel the same? Do you make yourself see art or does it just happen naturally?