discussion-WDec7

Discussion questions for Wednesday, December 7 and Friday, December 9

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1. From what you've now read about their 1936 production of //Macbeth//, what kind of changes to the script or staging were made by the Negro Unit of the New York Federal Theatre Project under the direction of Orson Welles? And why? Why do you think this production of the play was so celebrated in its time? (If you know anything about American history in the 1930s, how much of its success can be attributed to reflecting the issues and debates of its time -- i.e., the same times to which, say, //Dead End// was responding?) And why is this 1936 production still talked about today -- is it because of the way it played with the tradition, or despite the fact that it did so?

2. Consider the multiple productions/adaptations of //Macbeth// that we've looked at so far: the 1936 Federal Theatre Project stage version sometimes known as the "Voodoo //Macbeth//," the 1948 black-and-white film version directed by Orson Welles (who had also directed the 1936 FTP stage version), the 1978 version for British television with Judi Dench and Ian McKellen, the 2001 film parody (?) set in 1970s Pennsylavania, //Scotland, PA//, and the Classical Comics version we've read for class. **Now decide which ones come closest to approaching the technique or the spirit of the play as it would have been produced in Shakespeare's own time.** Why do you think so? Be specific. For reference, here are some of the characteristics of the Elizabethan theater in Shakespeare's time as described in my class presentation notes (available also on D2L):
 * Globe Theater: a 3-story open air structure, 100' diameter, total Stage platform 43' wide x 28' deep, open stage with small backstage “tiring area” for actors under the balcony (similar to the Roman stage of Plautus's time), sometimes a trap door in stage floor or overhead rigging for stage effects
 * Spectators: Globe accommodated 3000 spectators, some in the "Pit" (a 56' courtyard for often-rowdy “groundlings” who paid a penny), some in the "Gallery" (3 floors of seats surrounding the thrust stage on three sides occupied by higher-paying customers)
 * Style: conventional (in Gorelik’s sense), using very limited props and scenery, with setting and character generally indicated through dialogue (for example, night indicated by actors carrying a torch)

3. Consider the multiple productions/adaptations of //Macbeth// that we've looked at so far: the 1936 Federal Theatre Project stage version sometimes known as the "Voodoo //Macbeth//," the 1948 black-and-white film version directed by Orson Welles (who had also directed the 1936 FTP stage version), the 1978 version for British television with Judi Dench and Ian McKellen, the 2001 film parody (?) set in 1970s Pennsylavania, //Scotland, PA//, and the Classical Comics version we've read for class. **Now decide which ones would be enjoyed most by viewers intimately familiar with Shakespeare's play.** Why do you think so? Be specific. For reference, here are some of the characteristics of the Elizabethan theater in Shakespeare's time as described in my class presentation notes (available also on D2L):
 * Globe Theater: a 3-story open air structure, 100' diameter, total Stage platform 43' wide x 28' deep, open stage with small backstage “tiring area” for actors under the balcony (similar to the Roman stage of Plautus's time), sometimes a trap door in stage floor or overhead rigging for stage effects
 * Spectators: Globe accommodated 3000 spectators, some in the "Pit" (a 56' courtyard for often-rowdy “groundlings” who paid a penny), some in the "Gallery" (3 floors of seats surrounding the thrust stage on three sides occupied by higher-paying customers)
 * Style: conventional (in Gorelik’s sense), using very limited props and scenery, with setting and character generally indicated through dialogue (for example, night indicated by actors carrying a torch)