The Green Show is a short dance piece intended to accompany the show being performed in the Elizabethan Theatre. In this case, "The Tempest."
While watching this, a number of notions struck me. First, the physical capabilities of some humans is awesome, in the true sense of the word. Second, my understanding of the power of dance as performance is really quite pathetic, and something I hope to remedy in my tenure in New York. Third, when the dancers include elements of acting, ie displaying emotion and interacting with the audience, the power of the dance is increased inordinately.
The dancers did a bang up job, for the most part, but there was one notion which troubled me a tad. I imagine I will come off sounding bad no matter how I say this, but there was one female dancer who was significantly larger than the rest of the women. She was still a marvelous dancer and took part in one of the more impressive pieces. However, she just made the troupe look awkward. Miscast. As I brusquely commented to my comrade, it had the appearance of a dance teacher casting herself into a student recital. Now, back in the college days when I fancied myself an actor, I was not cast in a play because of my size. I was told by the director that my breadth and musculature would have unbalanced the aesthic of the play. It makes me think about the notions of casting based on the physical appearance of the people in question. Is it fair? In a sense it seems like it is a requisite component of casting a performance. As a director (or a choreographer) you are responsible for the visuals presented on the stage, and certainly some playwrights have clear particulars on what the characters should resemble.
So, fairness? Should casting contain the impetus be on physical? However, since this is supposed to be a blog about writing, it's time to turn the question to think about writing. Where are the guidelines to describing the characters we write? Should we be concerned about their physical appearance? I mean, does it matter when the play is cast?
Maybe I'm not making too much sense... But it is a question that has been bouncing around my head for a spell.
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