Part of the reason I am attempting to attend 50 plays in one year is to further educate myself, and to develop a keen sense of my tastes in theatre. Throughout my childhood and even college, there were certain styles of theatre that dominated my education. I am not necessarily better at understanding these types, or partial too them in any way, I just don't really have enough exposure to the other stuff.
Shakespeare and Musicals. That was all I knew of theatre until I was about 10 years old. And I was pretty well versed in both for a kid. The amount of art and culture I was exposed to in that age range was amazing and definitely shaped me into who I am today. But it was still lacking. Then Arthur Miller taught me there that you did not have to break out into song and dance, nor did you have to talk all crazy like (Hamlet was my favorite as a kid). Real people talking and just being could be a play. What I was given was so small of a piece of this great big theatre puzzle. Mostly pieces written by men, and written more than 40 years ago.
During my first semester at college, I studied in London and had the opportunity to take a few classes that would mold me in a new way. Performing Arts in London and Play Critique forced me to do things I had never had the chance to before. Each week we attended one play, then read it, and discuss it. In the other class, I experienced types of art I had never even really considered seeing, like dance, the opera, and a symphony. In that one semester, I enjoyed more performance based art than I did through most of college. I attended roughly 20 theatre performances, 2 dance performances, an opera, and a symphony. This opened my eyes to how far art and culture spreads and how easily one can access it if they try.
So that's what I'm doing. Trying to access as much art as possible. In the process, I'm bringing as many other people with me. Because, why not educate and expand other's knowledge of performance based art as well?
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