Plays I Have Seen So Far

1.) Lord Of The Flies
" Senior De Las Moscas"
performed by: The University of San Martin
at theater: Julieta

Review:
*write here when theres more time*



2.) Monica's Garden
"El Jardin De Monica"
performed by: A Peruvian Theater Group
at theater: Somewhere in Miraflores

Review:

Monica's Garden was read out loud in class before we went to go see it. Each one of my classmates and I had imagined a bizzare interpretation of this play due to Monica's extreme character. I was disappointed once I reached the theatre because it was poorly taken care of. Ironically, it foreshadowed the play perfectly. The play, to say the least, was a disaster. I sat up front and was aware of everything that was going on backstage and on the sides. There was a constant light that was on the whole play that kept distracting me. Well to be honest, maybe I distracted myself with it anyway because the play wasn't enjoyable. The setting was unique but it needed more props to give the "garden" more of a junk yard feel. It was too saturated on the middle of the stage, it needed some more surroundings. Apart from the misinterpreted setting, the cast didn’t seem to understand the play all too well. Monica’s costume and makeup was too dark and creepy making it hard to demonstrate that her character was just a dysfunctional child. The actress made it seem like Monica was a teenager who had just discovered makeup and wanted to seem older! Her body language did not convince me that she was a child neither, and her “childish” attitude did not seem to fit the character just quite. I have to admit that her transition to her mother’s voice was quite good, but not good enough to make the audience understand that it was caused by emotional instability due to her mother. It was obvious by the text that there was problems in the house hold but the actress did not seem to capture it. However, the actress playing “Ratita,” did seem to grasp the childish body language and attitude better but her costume was a bit off. I liked the style and the color but there seemed to be a measurement malfunction. It was way too short. I feel that her interpretation of “Ratita” was the best out of the three, but it was also the easiest to act out. Her squeaky voice helped the audience understand that she was just a lost girl looking for a new playmate. The odd friendship that was built between Monica and Ratita was a bit awkward, it should have been softened by their playing actions. They kept hiding behind the “tree” and giving their back to the audience, making me realize how bad that makes an actor look. Moreover, the third actor, the little boy, wasn’t convincing. The little boy’s attire was very generic so it was easy to realize what his character was but was his acting wasn’t all that great. He should have expressed his lines better with more facial expressions. The lighting did not change at all throughout the play, only at the end and it wasn’t as dramatic as it should have. Anyway, the reflection here is, if we had performed this play, how could we have done it better? How could we have interpreted Monica’s character? It’s so complex now that I look back at her description at the start of the play and realize how hard it is to interpret her character.
"... es una niña que podría tener hasta ochenta años, que es la máxima edad que puede tenerse. Ella no sabría decirnos tampoco cuántos años hace que está aquí. Es ágil. Delgadita. Nerviosa. Con una lamparita encendida dentro de cada ojo. Ahora está jugando. Juega incansablemente. No se detiene nunca. No puede detenerse. Ah, pero es la voz de Mónica lo importante. Eso es lo que realmente es Mónica: una voz. Envejece. Crece. Se hace pequeñita. Es agria y cortante. Es dulce. Es amarga. Retiene. Aleja. Nos acompaña, o nos deja terriblemente solos. Y luego están sus manos y su risa: la risa de Mónica no puede escucharse sin que produzca desazón, desconsuelo o el sentimiento de sentirnos abandonados en un lugar donde todos hablan un idioma que no entendemos y nos rodean miradas hostiles, impúdicas; las manos de Mónica no pueden olvidarse si se las ha visto mintiendo alguna vez. Nada más.




3.) Without a Title
"Sin Titulo"
performed by: Yuyachkani
at theater: Somewhere

Review:

*write more here when theres more time*

4.) The Opera of Three Cents
" La Opera De Tres Centavos"
performed by: A Colombian theatre group
at theater: ICPNA

Review: