I first read "Our Town" in tenth grade. I knew there was something amazing about it, but I couldn't understand, see, or find it. I made it my mission to find out.
Over the years, I have seen literally hundreds of productions of "Our Town," always in hopes of discovering the beauty that it possesses...somewhere.
And here it is. Finally.
This very contemporary, very recent production of "Our Town" is a stunning revisualization of this, Thornton Wilder's greatest work.
The thematic material of "Our Town" is often misunderstood as a look at the ordinariness of daily life and how tedious the mundane is, but this is a short-sighted claim to Wilder's writing, as he provides much more depth and texture than that.
It is biting yet sweet. It is sarcastic yet humbly honest. It is contemporary yet nostalgiac. In "Our Town," life is beautifully tragic, woefully joyous, and endearingly boring.
The acting here is top-notch, as the starring roles are filled by such seasoned veterans as Paul Newman, Jayne Atkinson, and more. Newman especially shines as one who is amused, terrified, and bored with this small provincial place over which he seems to be a kind of non-active deity. Emily's final farewell to Grover's Corners is especially beautiful.
The real wonder of this production is that it is apparent that the production team pulled together to create a solid, collaberative, cohesive piece of theatre that would reach people of all ages, colors, and creeds. All aspects of the production have come together beautifully to create this amazingly convincing work of theatre.
Furthermore, this televised version is a wonderfully rendering of the original stage production. The camera never feels obtrusive, it never feels out of place or foreign. We feel like the audience, not like the camera. We are being led on a tour.
Perhaps it is Thornton's (and the Stage Manager's) brilliant tour-guide-like presentation that makes this work so superbly on camera as well as stage.
All in all, this mounting of "Our Town" surely does Thornton Wilder justice, as it brilliantly achieves what all great theatre should aspire to do: it emotes; it teaches; it explains; it examines; and it humanizes. Do not miss this for anything.
Over the years, I have seen literally hundreds of productions of "Our Town," always in hopes of discovering the beauty that it possesses...somewhere.
And here it is. Finally.
This very contemporary, very recent production of "Our Town" is a stunning revisualization of this, Thornton Wilder's greatest work.
The thematic material of "Our Town" is often misunderstood as a look at the ordinariness of daily life and how tedious the mundane is, but this is a short-sighted claim to Wilder's writing, as he provides much more depth and texture than that.
It is biting yet sweet. It is sarcastic yet humbly honest. It is contemporary yet nostalgiac. In "Our Town," life is beautifully tragic, woefully joyous, and endearingly boring.
The acting here is top-notch, as the starring roles are filled by such seasoned veterans as Paul Newman, Jayne Atkinson, and more. Newman especially shines as one who is amused, terrified, and bored with this small provincial place over which he seems to be a kind of non-active deity. Emily's final farewell to Grover's Corners is especially beautiful.
The real wonder of this production is that it is apparent that the production team pulled together to create a solid, collaberative, cohesive piece of theatre that would reach people of all ages, colors, and creeds. All aspects of the production have come together beautifully to create this amazingly convincing work of theatre.
Furthermore, this televised version is a wonderfully rendering of the original stage production. The camera never feels obtrusive, it never feels out of place or foreign. We feel like the audience, not like the camera. We are being led on a tour.
Perhaps it is Thornton's (and the Stage Manager's) brilliant tour-guide-like presentation that makes this work so superbly on camera as well as stage.
All in all, this mounting of "Our Town" surely does Thornton Wilder justice, as it brilliantly achieves what all great theatre should aspire to do: it emotes; it teaches; it explains; it examines; and it humanizes. Do not miss this for anything.