Paul E. Turtola
A. Tennessee Williams
Born Thomas Lanier Williams in Columbus, Mississippi, Tennessee was the son of a shoe salesman who moved his family to a dark and dreary tenement in St. Louis. Using this Missouri city as the setting of his play, “The Glass Menagerie”, Williams created his drama by using personal family experiences.
After moving to St. Louis, both Tennessee and his sister Rose responded badly to their newer, more dreary environment, and both had breakdowns as a result of this horrid change in their lives. Tennessee became so ill that he suffered partial paralysis and was unable to participate in many school activities. A highly intellectual young man, he spent a large amount of time reading and developing his writing talent. Though Tennessee later overcame his physical problems and left the family to pursue a career in writing, his sister Rose was a much sadder case. Rose became so desperately ill from depression that her family decided to have a lobotomy performed on her. This strategy, however, was not effective, and Rose sank into an even more passive and hopeless state than before. Williams felt awful about this tragic situation, feeling guilty for not talking his parents out of such a horrid operation to his sister. This sorrow stayed with him and was the impetus for writing a play that represented his family’s dramatic story.
“The Glass Menagerie”
In “The Glass Menagerie”, Tom Wingfield’s memories are similar to the playwright’s own recollections of himself and of his sister’s happier school days as well. The play in its entirety acts as a memory for Tennessee Williams, for it comes very close to his actual experience with his family and is a tribute to the sister he dearly loved. The character of Laura Wingfield is a stunning depiction of Williams’ sister, Rose, a physically and psychically frail young woman, who withdraws from life after the family moves to St. Louis. Like Rose, Laura becomes a great disappointment to her mother (Amanda). She calls herself a cripple and has no self esteem or hopes for the future that her mother has planned for her. Rather than fight to avoid her shyness and physical handicap, Laura retreats into a fantasy world of tiny glass animals that she collects in the family tenement. Williams uses Tom Wingfield to voice his own thoughts, and, as a younger Tennessee, he rebels against his mother’s Old South principals and ideas about success. His ambition to write fuels his desire to leave his family and St. Louis behind, just as his father’s love of the sea did just a short time before. Wingfield doubles as the narrator, and it is he who calls this story a “memory play.” According to the playwright’s own production notes, the memory play uses projections and special music to recall the past.
“Cat on a Hot Tin Roof”
Tennessee Williams wrote about his family experiences in other plays as well. In “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof”, William recalls deriving the title from a phrase that his father, Cornelius, used about his mother: he would often tell his wife that she made him “as nervous as a cat on a hot tin roof.” Williams created the role of Big Daddy with his father in mind, as well as using the son (Brick) in an autobiographical way. It is with this character that he offers hints about his awareness of his own homosexuality, although he revealed that personal element only obliquely in this play and other works until he “came out” during an interview with David Frost in 1970. It is worth noting that in the film version, all suggestions of homosexuality were removed, and it focused instead on the character’s immaturity and his need to grow up sufficiently to be able to assume the responsibilities of marriage (the role of Brick was played by Paul Newman).
The strong personal experiences of Tennessee Williams’ life provided the material for his plays. While not all writers are as emotionally and personally close to their material, Williams’ dramatic situations accompanied by the sharp, naturalistic dialogue he uses to recreate his memories, make him one of America’s greatest playwrights.
B. Arthur Miller
Another example of the literary work that is contained in the course deals not so much with biographical elements that a writer includes in a work, but with the need for the writer to express feelings or strong beliefs to an audience.
Arthur Miller is one of the most important, and most honored playwrights in American history. He was born in New York on October 17, 1915, the second of three children. His working-class family had a deep influence on him, and in all his plays there is a sensitivity to the common man and those struggles through which he defines himself and his place in society.
Arthur Miller’s work covers a wide range of material, much of it growing from his childhood memories of a tightly-knit and eccentric Jewish family. In his youth, Miller was actively involved with political issues and experienced problems with anti-Semitism in the thirties and forties. While Tennessee Williams used personal experiences for their emotional impact in his writing, Arthur Miller chose to create his work to express his political concerns and focused the content and themes around his personal views about certain issues.
“The Crucible”
“The Crucible”, written in 1953, is an example of Miller’s interpretation of the social hysteria sweeping the United States. Critical reaction to the play was mixed. Many admired its craftsmanship and theatricality, but many also thought it was too blatantly topical, too obviously based upon the Joseph McCarthy hearings. Only when the play was revived in an Off-Broadway production a few years later did it find a truly enthusiastic reception. It ran for over 500 performances, and was finally seen not as a piece of political tract writing, but as an engaging and timeless drama. The proof of this universality is seen in its continued popularity, not only in this country, but around the world.
The play portrayed witchhunts of seventeenth century New England and concentrated on the young girls of Salem Massachusetts. When it was written, America was in the midst of an outbreak of fear and accusation, and the anti-Communist hysteria of Joseph McCarthy and the House Committee on Un-American Activities (HUAC), was well under way. The Committee held hearings to flush out suspected Communists from all areas of American life, particularly the arts. Many artists and performers came under unfair scrutiny for their political views and allegiances, and were often asked to testify against their friends. Many critics denigrated the play because they thought it was a thinly veiled attack on that event.
During this period, many artists were blacklisted and therefore prevented from working in commercial theaters and movie companies. Some were imprisoned for not testifying at others’ trials, and some had their reputations and careers destroyed. Arthur Miller was fearless in facing down the HUAC, and he was convicted of contempt of court for not testifying against his friends. For a time he, too, was blacklisted, but his contempt decision was reversed and he was not imprisoned. Given his personal political stance during this volatile time, it is not surprising to see that Miller’s themes usually center on matters of social concern.
Activities for Literary Work
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-Research each play’s background before reading it. A brief study should be made of events that may have influenced the writer, so that the student may understand the writer’s reasons for writing the work,
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-As an assignment, the student must select a topic dealing with one of the following items and be able to report to the class the results. This and other background material may lend insight into why the play was written.
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Choose among the following:
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-The local history of the period.
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-The cultural context of the play’s characters.
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-Important events that occurred.
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-Religious or political ideals people might have had.
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-After reading “The Glass Menagerie”, come up with a list of examples from the script that reinforce the playwright’s personal experiences. What characters were used to support the playwright’s views? Were any characters used to oppose them? Are there any elements of the design of the play (sets, lighting, music, costumes or make-up) written into the script that enhance the playwright’s message? This last question will be an interesting project in itself, for if the play is later seen in performance or on film there may be more responses towards the treatment of the play and whether it served the playwright’s theme very well.
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-Take a play that deals with a historical reference or a political bias, like “The Crucible”, and challenge the student to come up with a contemporary comparison to what was read. Has this contemporary event influenced anyone to write about it? Try to develop a list of any plays, books, movies or songs that may be based on a recent occurrence. If a student has a talent for creating something, assign an interpretation of a modern event in recent history to work on, then write a play, make a video, compose a song or choreograph a dance or movement piece that expresses views about an influential event. Some modern examples may include: terrorism in the USA, the presently unpopular political system, the outbreak of AIDS, poverty, racism, the danger of gangs in our society, as well as a myriad of other world events. By creating a piece of art in this manner, students can develop an understanding of the function that art fulfills for us, in that it not only entertains, but also documents, analyzes and meditates upon how we live.
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-Gather a group of people. Hand out five or six pieces of paper, folded. On two of them, write “Witch.” Now have the rest of the group decide which of them are witches, without asking them any questions directly. Make all your decisions based on what you see, and how you interpret their behavior. All the persons selected should try to make the inquisitors believe they are the witch.
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-Study the events surrounding the Joseph McCarthy hearings of the House Committee on Un-American Activities, and show how these are mirrored in” The Crucible”. Was that a situation that could only have occurred during the “cold war” of the 1950’s?
The Theatrical Work of the Actor
Objectives
Nearly all of the plays we work on in class will, at the beginning of the course, concentrate on the performance or theatrical aspect of drama. We will attempt to understand what makes a play theatrical by focusing on the actor’s work in play analysis and characterization. By exploring the role of the actor in a particular group of scenes, students may be able to interpret the written text as living dialogue. After careful analysis of the scene’s meaning in terms of plot, a strategy for the student may include role playing and improvisation for clearer understanding of the characters’ actions and motives. This section of scene work, while being mindful of the play’s form and content, will emphasize the need to perform the play in the way it was intended to be expressed: through the body and voice of the actor.
Strategies for Theatrical Work
As students actively rehearse and perform scenes in the classroom, the instructor should notice which scenes are of greater interest to the class than others. These scenes should be the material used for further literary and cinematic work. The course should not attempt to cover all three approaches (literary, theatrical and cinematic) for every play that the class works on. Students should be able to choose what plays, playwrights, styles, and time periods they want to research. At the conclusion of the course, credit should be based on achievement in classroom work, written journals and interview logs, as well as papers dealing with directing and film work as the course develops and students progress to higher learning levels. It is very important that the students develop independent work habits and can fulfill their own personal needs in the course. Some students will want to work on more plays than others, and a few may not even be excited about the prospect of acting in front of others. The instructor will have to make certain information known to the class about how much work is to be completed by the end of the course, but the actual quantity of work should not necessarily be the same for all students.
Along with scene work in the classroom, it will be very helpful and more interesting for the students to learn methods of acting from work done by other actors in professional and non-professional productions attended throughout the school year. This unit will provide a number of interviews with noteworthy actors to offer different approaches to script analysis and methods of characterization, supplementing rehearsal and performance done in the classroom.
As part of this curriculum, students will see numerous live theater performances and films throughout the weeks of the course. They will also be expected to assemble a collection of interviews from actors they have either seen perform in person, seen on television or read about. These interviews may come from books, magazines, newspapers, radio or television recordings, and will be useful in preparing the student to learn various methods of acting. After attending live performances, the student will interview a member of the production’s company as part of this research. By communicating with working artists, students may develop a working vocabulary while gaining a better attitude towards the commitment it takes to become a theater artist.
The following material on Geraldine Page sheds light on how an actor prepares, and demonstrates how to interview. It illuminates the professional demands of the actor and stresses the work ethic and discipline necessary to persevere in a very difficult field.
A Sample Interview of Geraldine Page
Geraldine Page offers her views on acting in an interview with Jeanmarie Kolter. She feels that script study is essential in promoting the development of any character. Through the on-going study of acting with a variety of teachers a respect for acting styles can be formed. It is often necessary for the actor to work with others who have learned acting from different schools and disciplines. Ms. Page has this to say about acting:
. . . People will assume that all you have to do is read something and then you can get up and act professionally. You can’t. If you put down first that I am a graduate of a regular drama school, that I spent seven years in winter and summer stock, that I studied seven years with Uta Hagen and two years with Mira Rostova, and was at the Actors Studio for ten years, then if I say I read a script, put it away and don’t think about it, it’s not misleading. The training that I have is in my brain and it works on material in not-so-conscious ways. I have all sorts of complicated, computerized knowledge stored away in the back of mind. When I do wing it, a lot of work has been done that I wouldn’t have time to sit down and explain to everybody. That sounds pretentious, but the only alternative is to be very cavalier.
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Respect for another acting philosophy can carry actors far when it comes to the theater profession. An actor may avoid needless conflict with colleagues over artistic matters when he or she understands different methods of doing things. Page believes that a good director will make use of actors’ methods, blend them, and produce a unified piece of work that serves the play.
William Shakespeare
Part of the acting work in the course will focus on the plays of William Shakespeare. His plays will be used in class to learn acting methods in the same way that other scenes are used, but with particular emphasis on the language of his great comedies and tragedies. The success of this scene study will depend on students’ abilities to identify with dialogue that is over four hundred years old and make it understandable dialogue in their acting to a contemporary audience. Some of the work in class, while focusing mainly on acting scenes, will require some extra study, and some class time should be devoted to this area. If an expert on Shakespearean acting can be brought into the class, perhaps a workshop of some sort could be held. An excellent book entitled “Shakespeare and His Players”, by Martin Holmes, is a good resource for studying this particular type of acting style. In it, students may learn about Shakespeare’s methods and his relationship to the company of actors he wrote for.
Research for Acting Shakespeare
It was Shakespeare’s intention to write for the entertainment of Elizabethan audiences at the Globe Playhouse, and he could not afford to dwell too long on points that called for serious contemplation. His great speeches, while considered poetry by some, are drama. They are spoken and felt by actors who bring the words to life through the characters in the play. Words, lines or phrases have to create an immediate impression at the moment they are heard, and then the scene must go on. There is no time to go back and be thoughtful and analytical about what was just said. As Martin Holmes notes:
“Nowadays we can refresh our memories, or repeat our sensations, by studying the text upon the printed page, but Shakespeare’s original audiences could not do anything of the sort, and he had no reason to suppose, when he wrote, that they would ever want to. He had to make his effects at the first hearing, or not at all.”
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The many scholars who have written volumes dealing with the works of the Bard, do so after repeatedly going over the written text, but the true wonder of his plays was the immediate impact that they had on a live audience. While creating a solid, well-made piece of literature, Shakespeare also wrote for particular actors in his company and was mindful of the variety of spectators in the audience that his company performed for from week to week. His work on the play continued after the writing stage, for he spent much time working with the actors. It was at this rehearsal stage of the productions that Shakespeare would see his work fully realized, and it was the work done by his actors-the unwritten work, that is-that gave his plays life.
Shakespeare, for instance, may refer to soldiers and maids and lords and messengers in his plays by simply stating “they fight” or “Enter a messenger,” etc. The actors portraying such minor roles must add a personal dimension to the role, and as soon as we see this in a performance, we see how one soldier or messenger may be different from another soldier or messenger not only in their natures, but in relation to the story and their effect upon it. As Holmes puts it:
“It is all very well to read a long speech, or a brisk passage of dialogue, and admire the poetry, the tenderness or the wit, but it is still more illuminating to consider such a passage occasionally from the transmitting rather than the receiving end. The speech takes on a different quality at once. Instead of being a piece of Shakespeare to be respected, it becomes the expression of somebody’s feelings-the characters’, primarily, not the author’s-and its object is to convey information, or to arouse an emotion of some sort, or possibly both at once. One finds oneself considering afresh what the words actually mean, what impression they are intended to convey, and how best one can convey that impression in the process of delivering them. In other words, the passage is coming to life.”
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