Oct 28 2012
A Storyline Divided
courtesy of nytimes.com
“House/Divided” is very different from any play I have ever seen. It utilizes multi-media and a versatile set in order to draw parallels between the recent housing bubble and the Dust Bowl during the Great Depression. I should mention again this play is very versatile in all that it does. Actors play multiple roles. The house built on stage can be rearranged and is covered in a screen that can be projected on. This allows the set to be immediately transformed into a modern house from a 1930s farm.
Initially, I was annoyed that I couldn’t see everything clearly. The screen somewhat blocked what was going on inside the house, and I couldn’t always see the actors faces. But the positives outweigh the negatives in this one. When the plot switches to recent times, multiple screens light up showing stock quotes and video. And in other instances video cameras are used to project the actors’ faces on the big screen. The screens are overcrowded with video and information for the housing bubble (tech era) plot lines, while the 1930s part of the plot utilizes a much calmer screen set-up, often in black and white.
Also, the plot is very interesting. It follows a farming family that lost their home during the Great Depression. And it follows predominately two stock traders during the housing bubble. “House/Divided” is a very successful venture into experimental theatre which incorporates multi-media platforms. It has a little bit of everything in that watching the screens makes it a movie, while the singing makes it a musical, and the acting makes it a play. Very good. Very cool. It is definitely worth seeing.
I had the same feeling as you after I worked away from the play: disorientated but amazed. I also felt overwhelmed by the amount of information presented on the house but ultimately I thought it worked in the end, especially with the old projector sound.
I agree there were a hundred things going on at once. I loved the switches and the various focuses each scene had, it was very compelling. I think because we were so far away we weren’t able to see the actors faces too well but at the same time you knew what they were doing through their voices and great acting.