Previous Experience in Theater vs. Experience with Classical Asian Theater

Previous Experience in Theater vs. Experience with Classical Asian Theater 

           Prior to taking this class I have had multiple encounters with the theatrical and performing arts that have greatly impacted my life. My previous experiences have all been within the Western tradition of such productions such as the traditional European versions of a play, musical, dance forms (ballet, jazz, modern, etc.), and music (singing, orchestras, classical bands, etc.).  Such instances have served to shape my opinions regarding such art forms.

            As a young child I was exposed to dance through the minimal training I received in the ballet and jazz traditions. I was exposed to the performing arts through my vocal pursuits including participating in church choir and a child’s performing choir. My performing choir integrated aspects of acting and costuming into our performances to enhance the relation of our songs that included selections from Broadway plays. Later exposure to the performing arts included children’s plays, a performance of the ballet version of Don Quixote, and Broadway versions of the well-known musicals West-Side Story and The Phantom of the Opera. I continued on in my musical pursuits as well, taking up the clarinet and continuing my vocal studies.

            These previous experiences formed my stereotypical version of a performance. However, these previously made frameworks differed greatly from what we watched in class this week and the movements that we have been learning. For instance, the plays which I had seen prior to this class relied heavily upon the words spoken and required the actors to move in ways that recalled the normal movements of everyday life. On the contrary, what we watched this week relied less on the words and more upon the movements of the performers to tell the story. Rather than focusing on moving in the ways that people in the same situation would in everyday life, they took those motions one step further and illustrated the meanings of the words they were speaking as well. Their movements recalled a mix between the Western forms of traditional theater and ballet, allowing both the words and movements to facilitate the telling of the story. The purpose of these plays also contrasted with that of my previously conceived notions. Most modern Western plays are meant for entertainment, as are many historic Western plays though these also consist of performances meant to recall history and religion. The play we witnessed showed that in the Classical Asian style, plays are meant to communicate with the gods and to give them praise. This difference in purpose is probably a factor in the differences in style as function determines the message the performances want to convey which creates different actions.

            Overall, this new exposure to the Classical Asian style of dance and plays has caused me to reassess my concepts of the typical aspects of a performance.