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Critique of MADE Edie Lee MADE, which was written by Euripides and translated by Brendan Keenly, was directed by Christine Encumber and showed by Mama Theatre Company. I went to the theatre on June 30th, 2003. Although it is a heavy theme, all actors and actresses have tried to make the play as a relatively relaxed tone. I have moved by their passions. Both of them, two children included , were dedicated their performances. I really appreciated their hard work. It is a brilliantly revised, acted, and high level production.
I though that I would see that actors and actresses wear ancient costumes, and the stage sets and properties would be ancient Greek pattern. However, the style in this play is fresh in modern social environment. Contemporary clothing and adornment, furnishings, phone, divorce lawyers, newscaster, Struck coffee house, swimsuits, gardening tools, even the goblet both surprised me and made me laughing. This modern interpretation of the ancient theme stimulated my thinking. The inspiration of this script must have been drawn from the real life in ancient Greek.
Why do the same stories happen again and again after thousands years? Are humans still the same or not improving? Outside, the changes are huge, but inside, not much. Men and women still are very different in the emotional attitude while dealing with affection and marriage. People still stand in their own perspective to read other people. Both men and the women are selfish when they try to hold their benefits. Abandoned women still are distraught and furious. The rage of human still has such a huge lethality and destructive.
Revenge is still horrible and tragic. People still prefer to sit inside the theater to see the stories of others. After watching the show, people still enjoy in talking about content of the plays and issues round the real life. In addition, the actress (Trace Patterson) indeed has interpreted her role (Made) with her true feelings by her superb acting. Her performance left me a deep impression. When she stood up the first time, her image shocked me. She wore a red plush robe pajama with the messy hair. Her eyes and face are swollen due to crying.
Her bulging veins, long snivel, and angry tone gave me enough information that I was watching a angry and sad woman. Her sadness and pain are deep in her bone marrow. She was using her soul and all her body parts to perform Made. When she was expressing Media’s angry with Season’s ruthless eternal, she is trembling all over the body. When Made decided to kill her own children, she was in painful struggling that seemed to tear up her body. All her physical and mental parts highly involved in her performance.
At the same time, some humorous performances also impressed me. Media’s neighbor dean Cummins) who was always drinking something, the talkative nurse (Mary Jane Montage) who shoveled flowers down on the ground, the newscaster (Natalie Green) who interpreted a caring but funny woman, the neurotic barista (Sarah Dowdy) who really wanted moderation, Season’s attorney (Stuart Hoffman) who can rapidly change to a errors face in front of the camera, even the still moving “dead body’ of the little girl Cilia Aesthetes) both made me laugh.
They gave me a happy and relax moment within the tense plots. Music and light led the audience’s emotions in some special moments. It cleverly and effectively collaborated with the performances of actors and actresses and with the backstage staff to replace the scenes. Tilted downward stage extended to and connected to auditorium. It gave better sight and intimacy. All of the staff and their works form the whole play and gave it life. It is a wonderful play, and it makes me fall in love with theaters.