Last night Xanadu, a show I directed, opened at the Hale Center Theatre in Orem. I'm not just pimping out my work here, since I know that many MMM readers live outside Utah County. (Wait, there's people living outside Provo? Say wha?) But if you come to the show I would be happy to say hello. If I'm there. I have a lot of TV to catch up on and I seriously need to get my car into Jiffy Lube before all hell breaks loose with my fluids.
Anyway, I have thought about this production a lot. I've put a lot of time into it. And while there's nothing particularly offensive about the play, it does contain the following:
1. Men and women in super short shorts
2. A girl who brags about not wearing a bra
3. A cyclops and a Medusa (Satanic?)
4. A line about "fleeting intercourse"
5. A lot of super fey finger snapping
6. Choreography (i.e. angry flea hops)
7. A lot of glitter being thrown
8. Ladies dancing in tight metallic pants
9. A flying Pegasus (Satanic?)
10. Actors who stick their butts out a lot
I'm very proud of the show, but I'm also a priesthood holder. What's more, I'm a counselor in a bishopric. I'm not ashamed, but should I be? Is it okay to be a faithful LDS man and still like mythological (Satanic?) creatures and hot pants? Will my ward members judge me? Will I care? Will this come up in any kind of recommend interview? I don't know. I'm split. Brother Jekyll in me thinks that this is all very irreverent, but Brother Hyde loves it.
Oh, I don't know. It's something all of us in the arts struggle with. We want to create, and we want to explore, and we want to entertain. But we also want to hold our heads high in Elders Quorum. I'm not sure I know what the resolution is yet. Luckily, I shouldn't have this problem on my next production, Hedwig and the Angry Itch.
5 comments:
That last line made me almost do a spit take...
I love Hedwig, I do. I ordered "Wig in a Box" to support the Harvey Milk school for abused gay teens. But, my husband is a priesthood holder, in the Elders Q, is second Counselor.. and he and I do perform in a regular Rocky Horror Picture Show cast. (We have also done Hedwig, Repo! The Genetic Opera, Shock Treatment, Party Monster, Moulin Rouge!!, and several others.) We don't see any issues. I love what we do, I feel like since we don't have kids (nor, will we have) and I am fighting life-threatening illnesses for the second time in 2 years, whatever is fun (and FREE) then, heck! I am for it! It doesn't change who I am, and I think everyone needs to take a chill pill about midly raunchy media. In my opinion, if seeing gold lame short-shorts offends you, then likely you are weak minded and have bigger issues that you are not dealing with. Most of the RHPS cast is religious. Catholic, Jewish and LDS! lol I love "Magic" and I sing it at Karaoke every time I can! I also live outside of Utah, and we who live outside the bubble are much more liberal about everything! I love this post, Danke! Danke!
Well Brother Clark, we live too far away to make it to this latest production of yours--but I extended our last trip to Utah an extra day in order to drag some of my reluctant patrons of the arts to your AMAZING Macbeth production! You certainly made some Shakespeare converts there. I was teaching a Shakespeare class to some rambunctious 12 year old boys and your production became a source of inspiration for my son to share with the group as we rehearsed our Macbeth. So, in conclusion, keep exploring and creating--and do some more Shakespeare! (Yeah--that satanic Shakespeare with all his witchcraft and inappropriate humor!)
Although, I probably wouldn't go see the play, It is not my place to decide whether you are being "satanic" or "rauncy" just like it's not Buffy's place to say whether or not someone is weak minded. And for the record, I've never lived "in the bubble" and I'm not at all liberal.
Oops: I meant "raunchy" not rauncy.
Post a Comment