our town study guide

7/29/2019 Our Town Study Guide

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A Study Guide for Teachers and Students Written by Shelley Manis, University of Texas

Thornton Wilders

Our TOwnStarringJaston WilliamsofGreater Tuna Directed by Dave Steakley

we all ko that somethig is eteal. Ad it ait hoses ad it aitames, ad it ait eath, ad it ait eve the stas...Stage Manager in Our Town.Thornton Wilderwas born April 17, 1897 and lived until December7, 1975. Our Town was produced in 1938, which means he would have grown up duringthe time he wrote about in the play (1901-1913)so in many ways, he was writingabout what he knew. He taught at private high schools and at the University of Chicago,

and he served in World WarII from 1942-1945 in the U.S.Army Air Intelligence. Whenthe U.S. was entering WWII,Wilder wrote his secondmost famous play, The Skin ofOur Teeth.That play looked at

the world at three differentpoints in time: the Ice Age,the Great Flood as in the

Bibles Book of Genesis and a years-long modern global war. Finally, his third mostfamous play (originally called The Merchant of Yonkers) was initially a failure in the U.S.,but when a new director took the play to London, re-worked it and gave it a newname, it became even more successful than Our Town, both in London and in the U.S.The newly named play was called The Matchmaker, and it was adapted into the 1964 musical Hello, Dolly!

Thornton Wilder won three Pulitzer Prizes: One in 1938 for Our Town, one in 1943 for The Skin of Our Teeth and one much earlie1928 for a novel he wrote called The Bridge of San Luis Rey.

Related Discussion Question:What do you think he meant by naming the now on the stage as what makes theatre so powerfuHow is seeing a play a different experience than reading a book? Do you agree or disagree with Wilder?

Time CapsulesThe Stage Manager talks about creating a time capsulefor Grovers Corners at the turn of the century. He wants to include a copyof the play, the Bible, the U.S. Constitution and Shakespeares works.

If your class were to create a time capsule, what do you think would beimportant to include? Why? What would you want those items to tell futuregenerations about you?

I regard the theatre as the greatest of allart forms, the most immediate way in whicha human being can share with another thesense of what it is to be a human being. Thissupremacy of the theater derives from the

fact that it is always now on the stage.Thornton Wilder (as told to a Paris Reviewjournalist)

Theatre TEKS: 117.65, Level II

TEKS: 117.34, 117.37, 117.40

Eduction Department


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Epic theatre was a style of theatre madefamous in 1900s in the West by German

playwright Bertolt Brecht. (Brecht wroteMother Courage and Her Children, TheThreepenny Opera, and The Life of Galileo,among many other plays.) Inspired byRussian artists who used theatre tocreate social change, Brecht tried tocreate theatre that worked differentlythan the most popular form of theatreat the time (and even still now), whichwas realism. (Realist theatre attemptedto recreate the real world onstage).

In Brechts epic theatre, the goal was

to prevent the audience from what iscalled willing suspension of disbelief. Ifaudiences willingly suspend their disbelief,they can lose themselves in the world ofa play and accept it, temporarily, as real.Epic theatre was designed to distancethe audience from the characters andstage so they focused on both theaction onstage and off, rather than justfeeling something. Brechts epic theatreinspired Thornton Wilder, who was

writing at about the same time, and OuTown was written and produced in tha

spirit. Some of the aspects of Our Townthat make it similar to epic theater area bare stage, characters talking directly tothe audience (mostly the Stage Managerthough other characters do toowhichones do you remember?); waythe actare given titles; bits of lecture given bythe Stage Manager and other charactersThink about ZACHs production; whareminds you that you are watching aplay rather than peeking in on someonelife?

Brecht also inspired the work of lateplaywrights like Arthur Miller (Deathof a Salesman, The Crucible), TennesseeWilliams (The Glass Menagerie), SusanLori-Parks (The America Play), and TonyKushner (Angels in America).

Theatre TEKS: 117.66 Level III, 117.67 Level IV

On ZACHs minimalist set (typical of

Epic theatre) with lighting by Jason

Amato, Jaston Williams as the Stage

Manager talks to the audience and

explains the layout of the town of

Grovers Corners.

What is Epic Theatre?

Photos: www.kirktuck.com

Directors NotesI grew up in a small Texas townGrandview,population 935a place very much likeGrovers Corners. Our town was so smallthat once I mailed a card with an incorrectaddress and it was returned to my house,even though I had not included a returnaddress. The post ofce simply recognizedmy handwriting. No surprise then thatOur Town was the only play we ever readin Grandviewno Greek drama orShakespeare or Arthur Miller, only ThorntonWilders extraordinary classic.

When I rst came to work at ZACH nearly20 years ago, director Jim Fritzler and an all-star line-up of Austin actors and musicianscreated a beautiful production ofOur Townthat is one of my most cherished theatre-going experiences. I love this play. It is atouchstone we should all revisit at differentstages in our lives as new truths unfurl.

All of the actors in ZACHs productionare from Austin. Its important to me thatthis company of actors come from ourcommunity, and that you may run into themat the grocery store or on the Hike andBike Trail.

For our production I chose to perform itin contemporary dress and set it in whatfeels like Austin today to underscore thetimelessness of this story, even though wehave not altered Wilders language. Emilyand Georges nuptials are one of the most

signicant events to happen in this play;because weddings are hyped as the mostimportant day in a young womans life, I havecreated a site-specic wedding to provide adifferent visual identity for each act of thisremarkable play, united by a heavenly galaxyof stars. A stars mighty good company.

Director DAVE STEAKLEY

Do you like to write?

Be a blogger for ZACH. Write ashow review about an experience

at Our Town or another ZACH show,

ZACH Performing Arts School

classes or camps, and email it to

[email protected] the

opportunity to be published in our

blog.
http://www.kirktuck.com/http://www.kirktuck.com/


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George Gibbs (played by Michael Amendola) with little sister

Rebecca Gibbs (Crystal Odom) gazing at moonlight in Our Town.

1. Our Town surprised American audiences when it rstpremiered, because the original production did not havea realistic set as most popular plays of the time. Instead, itused only a couple of stools, a bench, chairs and two ladders.The actors mimed all of the props. What kind of an effectdo you think that had on audiences? Imagine going to amovie and instead of ultra-realist audio and visuals youre

used to, the actors work on a blank set, without soundtracks,special effects or props. Instead of seeing the plot unfold in avividly real location, you have to ll in the blanks with yourimagination. What effect would that have on you?

2. The Stage Manager says, There are things we all know, butwe dont take them out and look at them very often. Whatdo you think he means by that? What things does Our Townremind you to look at more often?

3. Our Town is a play that asks audiences to think about time,one ofOur Towns major themesit reminds audiences aboutthe current moment, how time passes. How would youdescribe Our Towns idea about time? What are some of theother themes in Our Town?

4. What are some world or political events outside ofGrovers Corners that affect the characters in the play? How

do they affect individual characters and/or the town itself?How are any of those relevant to you now?

5. What similarities do you see between Grovers Cornersand Our Town, whether its Austin or someplace else?

6. Why do you think baseball was such a big part of OurTown? What is signicant about baseball during Wilders timeand today?

Discussion Questions

Theatre TEKS: 117.64 -117.67

Life in an artistss colony Imagine living in a studio for ve weekswithout phone or TV...no interruptions allowed except when meals are deliveredThat is what Thornton Wilder experienced at The MacDowell Colony when hewrote the play Our Town.

The MacDowell Colony is an art colony in Peterborough, New Hampshire, foundedin 1907 by Marian MacDowell, pianist and wife of composer Edward MacDowellwho died a year after the colony opened in 1908. She established it primarily with

donations and led it for almost 25 years through both world wars and the GreatDepression.

The colony is a temporary haven for authors, poets, playwrights, artists andcomposers. Artists apply to MacDowell and if accepted, live in the colony for up to

two months to concentrate on their work. Room and board are free. Each artist is assigned one of 32 studios to use 24-hours-a-day. Each studio is a separate building with power, heat, simple amenities and lunch delivery. The artists generally share breakfastand dinner in a common area and allow interruptions by invitation only. They engage in group activities in the evenings. To ndout more go to: www.macdowellcolony.org

Past residents of MacDowell: Leonard Bernstein, Thornton Wilder, Aaron Copland, Milton Avery, James Baldwin, SpaldingGray, and recently Alice Walker, Alice Sebold, Suzan-Lori Parks, and Meredith Monk.

Edward and Marian MacDowell

Emily Webb (played by Jordan McRae) in Act III.

Phot

os:KirkR.Tuck
http://www.macdowellcolony.org/http://www.macdowellcolony.org/


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Cool links

www.thorntonwildersociety.comThis website has a wonderfully thorough biography of

Wilder and his family, as well as a descriptive list of hismajor works.

www.barrowstreettheatre.comThis is home to one of the most important andinuential productions ofOur Town today. The websitehas images and video of the production.

www.tufts.eduA unique operatic version of the play.

This project is funded and supported in part by the City of Austin through the Cultural Arts Division and by a grant from the Texas Commission on the Artsand an award from the National Endowment for the Arts, which believes that a great nation deserves great art.

Glossary

Convention: A feature of a literary work, play or performance style that has become standardized and expected over time,such as a soliloquy. It often refers to an unrealistic device (such as Mrs. Soames gushing to the audience about her love ofweddings) that the audience agrees to accept as normal.

Fourth Wall: The imaginary line dividing the audience from the characters and action of the play, which creates a sense thatthe audience is watching things without the characters/actors knowledge.

Pulitzer Prize: One of the most prestigious national awards Americans can receive. First awarded in 1917, it is named afterJoseph Pulitzer, a journalist and newspaper publisher who left money to Columbia University when he died in 1911. The prizeis awarded in 21 categories (in the general areas of journalism, arts and letters, and ctionincluding drama) and comes with a$10,000 award. Other playwrights who have won the Pulitzer are: Arthur Miller, Tony Kushner, August Wilson and Suzan-LoriParks. Wilder is a rarity, because he has won Pulitzers in two categories (drama and ction).

Realism:An approach to art that assumes that art should accurately reproduce an image of life. In theatre, it means that theset will have the look and feel of the location it represents in real life, and that conventions such as actors directly addressingthe audience or speaking their thoughts out loud in soliloquies will not take place. Instead, the audience will seem to watch theevents unfold as though through a fourth wall.

Soliloquy:A speech in which an actor, usually alone onstage, utters his or her thoughts aloud, revealing personal feelings.

Theme:A central idea of the play. There can easily be more than one, and themes may be stated directly or only implied.

Time Capsule: A collection of historical materials that serve as a snapshot in time of a particular generation, place or people.Often created for ceremonial purposes to commemorate a major event, such as a state bicentennial, they are buried or placedin the cornerstone (the rst stone set in the foundation of a new structure) of a signicant building, such as the state capital.

Willing suspension of disbelief: An act of temporarily accepting what is onstage (or in a movie or TV show) as real forthe duration of the performance in order to fully relate to the characters and plot.

Our Town Production Sponsors

Find out more about ZACH Theatre and Education Department upcoming shows:zachtheatre.org

Share your thoughts on Facebook and Twitter!

http://www.facebook.com/zachtheatre http://twitter.com/zachtheatre

Theatre TEKS: 117.64-117.67

Learn something new every day:

Wilder was actually born a twin. The twin brother, however, diedat birth. He had one older brother and three younger sisters, allaccomplished scholars and writers too.

In high school, Mr. Wilder became interested in theater and beganregularly attending plays. He also began to demonstrate his uniquetalents for writing.

Mr. Wilder served in both World Wars I and II.

After writing Our Town, Wilder himself played the Stage Manager onBroadway for two weeks and later in summer stock productions.
http://www.thorntonwildersociety.com/http://www.barrowstreettheatre.com/http://www.tufts.edu/http://www.zachtheatre.org/http://www.facebook.com/zachtheatrehttp://twitter.com/zachtheatrehttp://twitter.com/zachtheatrehttp://www.facebook.com/zachtheatrehttp://www.zachtheatre.org/http://www.tufts.edu/http://www.barrowstreettheatre.com/http://www.thorntonwildersociety.com/

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