Wow.

Yesterday was an eventful day.

After four others and I half- ran to the theater in the pouring rain, I arrived to my seat in the second row, dripping on my program and excited for the play.
And I can honestly say that I was not at all disappointed.

To be honest because of the name I thought I was going to see something childish, like Fantastic Mr. Fox. But this play really made me think. The name itself was symbolic of the scheming brothers and sister and their animalistic behavior. As they banged on the walls and rolled on the floor it was apparent that there was more to these people than just their wealth.

The acting of each character was spectacular, and the emotions they displayed and brought out in me were so intense. Birdie especially captivated me. She had a childlike innocence as she confessed her hope that they would acquire Lionette again. At first her character appeared to be a common aristocratic wife of the time: wealthy, ignorant and ignored. She has no strong voice in the play and is powerless until her outburst. At that point we see that she is not a silly wife to a rich man but a woman who married a man she thought she loved. In a way, I liked Birdie’s character best because I was able to relate to her the most: she is ignored.

In stark contrast is her sister-in-law Regina. She is a powerful woman who is determined to get her way by any means possible. Regina marries a man she detests just so she can elevate her status in society.

With the characters of Regina and her brothers Hellman makes a commentary on the greedy nature and selfishness of the Southern Aristocracy. Even though building the mill will bring money to the brothers, making the entire family rich, none of them want to share. In the end Regina blackmails her own brothers to give her most of the money. Regina’s struggle to gain power is finally rewarded at the end.

In addition to Hellman’s criticism of the aristocracy’s greed there is also a distinct criticism of their treatment towards African Americans. I was shocked when they first said the ‘n’ word, but this word emphasized how horribly they were treated at this time. When Horace tells Adie he wants to leave her money in his will, she knows that because of her low social status she will never receive the money.

During class many people have commented that the costumes were inappropriate. I think that although they are inaccurate for the time period, Van Hove made a good decision by keeping them simple. Anything fancier would have distracted me during the performance.

Speaking of distractions, I could not take my eyes off the LED screen until the lamb sacrifice. It was too big of a distraction and without a doubt the play would have been just as good without it. In the very first reading of the packet, Toward a New Stage, the author states that in order for a production to succeed it must be the antithesis of a motion picture. The screen was like a mini- movie itself, and in this case I did not think it was necessary.

Aside from this, I think the small amount of furniture allowed people to focus on the actors and their words. The big staircase in the center was important because that was where Regina let Horace die. I think this was in important scene because it showed just how much she was driven by greed. The scenery was not too much, but not too little either (aside from the screen). The sounds were perfect- they made dramatic moments more powerful, as well as the dim lights.

In order to not rant (and since I already wrote a bit too much) I’ll end this blog here. There are way too many things to comment on about this play, I tried to cover as much as possible without repeating too much from class. Yesterday was certainly an adventure. It was one of those days that makes you appreciate a hot shower and dry clothes more.