Wild Parties, Vaginas and Suburbia

Wild Parties, Vaginas and Suburbia Ive recently had the opportunity to see three MIT productions I know, I know, three plays AND five elections and/or speakers, how does she do it? Last week I saw Musical Theater Guilds Wild Party, which Keri produced entirely during the Month of January/IAP. It was about a couple during the 1920s that decides to throw a party to make themselves feel better about their failed relationship, and the party turns out a lot more exciting than either of them expected. I really liked the music because it was jazzy and the show in general was pretty energetic and nice to watch. Like Ive said before, I am not a great photographer, but apparently Jax Kirtley is, and since their photos are on the Wild Party photo page, they hopefully wont mind if I use a couple. I never wrote about it, but I saw MTGs production of Cabaret early this year which I really enjoyed I believe it was their summer production. The pictures are taken from the website. Again. So anyway, back to this semester, I saw Dramashops production of Suburbia. It was about some kids in a small town that hang out in a parking lot and their various issues, usually centered around Being Stuck In This Crummy Place, Not Caring That Youre Stuck In This Crummy Place, and Trying to Escape This Crummy Place. I cant find any pictures of the play, which is really sad because one of my friends pointed out that the set was AMAZING it was incredibly detailed, and especially considering it was just a parking lot and a 7-11, I was really really impressed. Last semester I also went to a Gilbert and Sullivan Players show called Cox and Box. It was quite a small affair only three or four characters, but I really enjoyed it. If you havent caught on by now, I really love all sorts of theater. Im not talented in any way in this department, unfortunately, but thats okay, Im busy with other things and am quite alright leaving it to the experts. I feel really bad about myself whenever I dont have pictures for you guys, or I do have pictures but theyre terrible. Seriously, when did it become an unstated prerequisite that you have to be a great photographer to be a blogger? Even my normal, non-artistic pictures turn out badly. Maybe I should take a class. Anyway, moving on. The most recent show I saw (last night) was the Vagina Monologues. Id never seen it, but its pretty famous so I was excited to do so. Apparently, on February 14th, or V-Day (for Valentines Day, Violence and Victory), thousands of Vagina Monologues productions are put on around the world to raise awareness and money for campaigns and charities that work to stop violence against women. MITs production of it It was held in the Stata Center in a large auditorium with soft red chairs, I might add, since people seem to care a lot about chairs nowadays. I was surprised to see the turnout: the 318-person auditiorium was full! Look at all the people that love to hear about vaginas! This is the only picture taken by me in the whole entry. Now you know why I rely on other people for photos.After discussing the (very entertaining and hilarious and sometimes sad) play with my guy friends,I noticed that they all believed that this was wild feminist propaganda that belittled men and encouraged women to keep to themselves. Id like to take this moment, with thousands of you listening, both guys and girls, to state that this is not what the play is about. Okay, so it is empowering towards women, it makes us feel good about being female and it makes us feel more comfortable with ourselves, and though there may be a few pokes taken at the opposite gender, in general, it is not an attack on men, nor is it counter-productive towards making society equal. Its hard to explain without you actually seeing it, but it is two simple things: a feel-good production, and just as importantly, an awareness campaign. Thats not to say that each production is not unique and that some may turn it into something else which is fine just dont make assumptions about something you havent actually seen. Funnily enough, I think I ended my last entry on a similar note. I dont mean for this to be uber-serious or anything. Just something to keep in mind. Any questions about theater at MIT will probably not be answered by me, because Im just a groupie ;) Someone from ARTalk can probably help you out :)