Criteria B: Theater Processes

Figure 5. and Figure 6. are my initial responses to reading The Balcony. In Figure 5. I used shapes to represent each character. For example, Irma is an elongated hexagonal prism. She is classy and put together in appearance; however, she is one of the more edgy and rough characters. The elongation of the hexagon represents an air of authority and the sleek sides of the prism represent her beauty. However, just as the prism is sleek but with pointed, jagged edges, Irma appears to be a beautiful woman, but is really a manipulative, stern, authority figure. The bishop on the other hand is a large triangle which represents his clumsy nature. The robustness represents how the bishop is ‘larger than life’ while living his personal fantasy. In reality, he is an insignificant, clumsy person of society just as the triangle is not as slender and elegant looking as the other shapes. I also mention the color red and ideas of war, turmoil, and confusion in my responses. For example, in Figure 5. I represent the brothel in the form of a red box surrounded by black clouds and grey arrows which represent the rebellion. These black clouds smoke from gun fire and the blood-red color of the brothel represents the pressure and danger the rebellion is putting on the women and customers of The Grand Balcony. The red box is also surrounded and alone amidst the black clouds which exhibits the brothel’s initial isolation from the issues of society. In Figure 6 many of my reactions include words such as confusion, deception, darkness, divide, and paranoia. In comparison to later notes and initial reactions these feelings of confusion, deception, etc. increase as the brothel becomes involved in the rebellion and as tension increases. This occurs mainly because Genet is attempting to exhibit the meaningless struggle in life. As he increases tensions, especially tension amidst confusion and deception, he is creating a complicated struggle. When this struggle is deemed obsolete in the end, Genet is proving that the struggle was meaningless and ‘absurd’ in the first place.

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Figure 5. Journal Page-Balcony Day 1

Figure 6. Journal Page-Balcony Day 5

Figure 6. Journal Page-Balcony Day 5

Using my initial responses to The Balcony, I was able to create the mood board above. Most of my initial reactions included the sights of blood, the sounds of gunshots and war, and an

overall feeling of deception. I chose to represent these sights, sounds, and feelings with masks and a dizzying image representing illusion and deception. I also used the image of a gun with the barrel facing the viewer, and the sights of dripping blood to represent the motif of the rebellion throughout the play. This gun facing the viewer coupled with the image of blood represents the concept that the brothel is a target for the rebels. The brothel allows men to lead lives of wealth, fame, and authority: the traits of the authority figures the rebels are fighting against. To represent the lavish lives acted out in the brothel I chose to include and image of black lace. The lace represents lavish tastes and class however the black color represents the idea that these lives are being acted out in a brothel and will never be truly elegant. I also included an image of a red-looking liquid to represent the bitter taste of wine. This wine represents how each character despite the bitter situations he or she is in, seeks pleasure. However, this red liquid coupled, with the images of guns and broken glass, looks more like blood. This blood could represent the bloodshed that will occur and has already occurred due to the rebellion and war around the brothel, thus emphasizing the motif of war and rebellion in this play.

As I created my mood board for The Balcony, I began to discover parallels in the lives of

the characters and in the lives of those living in the United States during the early 1900’s. These parallels are what inspired me to approach the play and explore the possibilities of people in the 1900’s in New York City during the transition between America’s Gilded Age and The Roaring 20’s. The 1900s marked a time of robber barons, gangsters, lavish parties, rebellious female figures called flappers, excessive drinking and smoking, all surrounded by poverty and anticipation of the Great Depression (Green). To represent these ideas, I created a mood board of possibilities for a new version of The Balcony. This new mood board includes pictures of Al Capone, speakeasies, flappers, Boss Tweed, and a decorated hall. My mood board also includes marionette figures and a visual representation of the metaphor, “A wolf in sheep’s clothing,” which represent the illusion, manipulation, and deception that I wrote about in my first reactions

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Figure 8. Mood Board-My Vision

to the play. These ideas are possibilities for my version of The Balcony. For example, the prostitutes of the brothel represent the rebellious and the no-longer-so-dainty spirit of the flappers. The corrupt wealthy businessmen such as Boss Tweed who had major power in the government were similar to the authority figures in The Balcony who also have their positions because of their wealth. Yet, one thing that is similar in all the people and activities highlighted in this mood board is the search for pleasure and the pursuit of happiness. Just as Camus and Genet believe we must pursue the pleasures of life, the 1900s Gilded Age and the transition into the Roaring 20s represents and age in which Americans smoked, drank, danced, and went to parties all with the goal of enjoying life without a care, (Green). This setting is just one of the many ways I could recreate The Balcony.

Inspiration from Live Theater Experiences

Our TownMoment: One moment of live theater that inspires me is in the play Our Town when the main character George visits the grave of his wife Emily.

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Tension: George and Emily are portrayed as disconnected lovers in the scene. Emily sits on a chair in a row of other people who have also passed away. Each person is on a chair, on top of a set of risers which creates a physical rift between the dead and the living in the play. In addition, as George mourns for his wife he is under brighter lighting than Emily who is in dark blue lighting. This lighting contrast creates disconnect and tension and no matter what George did in that given moment, he would never have been able to truly reach his wife and see her again.

Emotion: Given that Emily and George were in love and are now apart, there is a keen sense of longing and despair in this scene. All of the other “deceased” men and women who sit on the risers look out into the audience with blank expressions. This lack of emotion, in contrast with George’s grief emphasizes the divide amongst the husband and wife. The only active display of grief however is George simply falling to his knees; he did not cry out or scream. He merely executes one gesture of sorrow which is worth far more emotion than any words

Atmosphere: With the huge disconnect and tension created by two lovers apart, coupled with the emotion of despair created by gesture and lighting, this moment remains a very solemn one. All these elements come together to create an atmosphere filled with grief, regret, and sorrow.

Meaning: The overall theme that is expressed in this one moment of live theater is that one should appreciate the simple things in life and the time spent with loved ones. In the first scenes of Our Town, the meticulous and very detailed aspects of life are expressed. For example, feeding chickens or calling children down for breakfast in the morning are repeated over and over. These events however, become ones of true meaning when George realizes (after Emily has already passed) that these were all simple moments he spends with his wife Emily.

Connections to The BalconyThe author of Our Town, Thornton Wilder addresses the idea that the simple things in life are the most important and assign meaning to life. To convey such a message, the director of this performance repeats simple daily activities again and again. In this particular moment of his play, the director conveys this message in the one simple gesture of George falling to his knees. This small act makes the grief seem far more powerful and assigns meaning to Emily and George’s relationship and love for each other. Camus and Genet however, would argue that life is meaningless. In The Balcony Genet uses drama and repetition of extravagant emotions. Genet may have used seemingly overdone emotional reactions between the characters for exactly this reason: to show how meaningless life is. Seeing Our Town inspires me to consider using not the simple contrasting lighting or simple sets to covey the meaning of life, but extravagant costumes, sets, lights, and emotions to do the opposite. When an audience sees that in the end all this emotion and over-the-top action results in the same situation the members of the brothel began in, the audience will truly see how meaningless the conflicts (and life) were the first place.

AidaMoment: The second moment of theater that inspires me is the scene in which the reincarnations of Aida and Radames bump into each other decades later in the Egyptian and Nubian museum exhibit.

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Tension: Dramatic irony is used to create the tension in this moment of theater. Just a scene before this moment, the audience sees Radames and Aida leave each other and promise to see each other in another life. In next scene, as the reincarnations of these two characters walk through the museum, this tension increases. As the two characters get closer and closer tension increases as the audience knows that it is inevitable for the two to meet again

Emotion: Fleeting emotion and the emotion of the audience rather than the actor’s outward expression of emotion is used in this moment of theater. For example, when the reincarnations of Aida and Radames finally bump into each other, they do not recognize each other and walk away. However, after walking away, they look back at each other as if they are remembering what happened in their other lives. Since the reincarnations of the characters are played by the same characters who play Aida and Radames, the audience too experiences a desire to see the two characters together again just as the reincarnations do.

Atmosphere: Lighting is what is used to emphasize the connection between the reincarnations of Radames and Aida. Several people are walking through the museum however, only the reincarnations have white spotlights on them. This creates an atmosphere of suspense as the audience follows the two lights. When the two characters meet and their destinies are fulfilled, only then do the lights converge creating a feeling of unity as the lovers are reunited.

Meaning: The theme of this moment is that love will always find away and that no matter what happens, destiny and fate will be fulfilled. As Radames and Aida part in Egypt, they feel it is their destiny to meet again. In the end, when the two characters do in fact meet again, destiny is fulfilled.

Connections to The BalconyI am inspired particularly by this use of lights to portray the connection between Aida and Radames’ reincarnations. This lighting inspires me to visualize similar lighting throughout the scenes of The Balcony. For example, similar lighting could be used in the scene in which the people follow Irma dressed as the new queen and abandon Chantal and the rebels. Chantal, who is standing on another balcony, could have several beams of light pointed on her and slowly they could be shut off until she is shot (Figure 9.). As one beam is taken away from Chantal the other could be placed on the Queen. This use of light will similarly create tension and as the lights converge on the Queen, they will emphasize the growing connection between the people and the Queen.

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Figure 9. Lighting shifting from Chantal to the Queen and her ‘authority figures’ as Chantal and the rebels

loose followers.