Student Blog: Opening Doors

I have something to get off my chest. 

Until this year, I wasn’t the biggest fan of Sondheim shows. 

Shocking, I know. Looking back now, I’m surprised as to why I never was. The music is fantastic and scratches my brain in all the right ways. So many of the lyrics have double meanings that fill the stories in ways I couldn't imagine. 

I’ve been listening nonstop to his work, which is somewhat fitting, considering it's his birthday month. 

But, this got me thinking. How have my theatrical tastes changed over the years? 

1. Plays 

I always hate to say this as someone who considered myself to always have been a huge theatre enthusiast, but I used to find plays boring. I never had an interest in going to see them, but I had been in a few of them. But the opportunity to be in plays or to consume plays wasn’t as common as seeing or listening to musicals was. Once I got to school, I found myself reading one to two plays every week and spending hours in the Drama Bookshop with a stack of plays to read in my very limited free time. 

I still don’t go to plays often. I see the plays my school puts on, both well-known and student-written, and a few Off-Broadway shows, but not as often as I see Broadway Musicals. That is something I would like to change, and I've started to look into more off-Broadway shows to see. But maybe that’s part of the brand. As a directing student, I’m always trying to find plays I’d like to direct. Plays I’d throw out some ideas for that maybe one day I’ll submit for a student-led production at my school. Right now, I’m trying to figure out how to put together a bizarre play for my directing final, which takes place in a small black box space. 

2. Older Musicals 

Growing up, I obviously listened to all the musicals you are supposed to know but I found myself enjoying more contemporary shows. I found the plots of older musicals to be boring, if not outdated. If asked about it, I would say things like “Oh I’ve listened to it a long time ago” when in reality I’ve only listened to a song or two. 

As I get older, and become obsessed with Sondheim, I feel like it’s safe to say that I just am getting older and am better at conceptualizing and relating to pieces that deal with the pesky monsters known as loneliness and humanity’s imperfections. They make more sense now but I also think my appreciation musically has grown too. I don’t listen exclusively to indie or musical theatre anymore. I listen to classical music, rock, some rap, jazz, and a lot of Joe Hisashi pieces. 

3. Comedy 

I used to consider myself a bit of a dramatic actress, or rather, I wanted to be one. For some reason, there’s this belief that tragic or dramatic performance and content means it’s better. However, in recent years I’ve found myself embracing more comedic or bizarre theatre. Not avant-garde, but rather wild subject material that leaves me shocked more than anything. I find it’s more fun, it’s more alive, and it’s a little easier to work with. 

Comedy isn’t easy. It has to be choreographed but not micromanaged, and you shouldn’t play the joke. Satirical pieces, with raunchy language but significant social commentary or mocking of the world, interest me a lot as a director. 

A lot of Sondheim's works focus on growing up and the different struggles being a human has. While changing tastes and interests aren't always world-shattering, it's another sign of growing up which in itself can be scary. 

Signed, 

J.F