There are many aspects of the term “Original Practice:”
architecture, costumes, pronunciation, production, etc. This blanket phrase
covers so much, it almost has no meaning, except to denote theatrical practices
as we imagine they may have been. The
truth is that no one knows exactly what “original” theatre architecture,
costumes, pronunciation or production methods were. The best we can do is
conjecture – and in some cases, we can get very close. But let us not fool
ourselves we will ever get it “right.” Anything we do today is merely a modern
interpretation.
If that is the case, then what value do “Original Practices”
have? If the aim is to recreate an
authentic (another fuzzy word) Elizabethan theatrical experience, then they
mean nothing but living archaeology. Living history has its place, but that
place is not in a theatre. Should a theatre get absolutely everything
historically correct (which may in some cases meaning breaking several laws
concerning alcohol and/or solicitation), there will always be a missing factor:
the audience. No matter how accurate the theatre, the actors, the costumes, the
accents are, the performance will never
have an Elizabethan audience with Elizabethan morals and an Elizabethan
understanding of the world and its place in the cosmos. This is a sheer
impossibility.
Everybody’s work should be “original” or else what is the
point? What we do is “original.” Other companies in Chicago and Portland that
work from the same theories as we do have different audiences than we have in
Pittsburgh. The case can be made that we are looking for some sort of
historical accuracy in our productions, but what would that matter? We do not
create museum exhibitions. We create live
theatre for a live audience, not an
imaginary historical gathering.
So how would USP describe what we do? We acknowledge that our working practice is based on historical theories regarding the production of theatre during the time that William Shakespeare worked. We work from cue scripts that are designed to give the performer the most pertinent information needed for performance of the role in the most economical way possible. We include our surroundings and audience as much as possible (not to be confused with audience participation, although that is sometimes used). We tell the story without telling the audience what to think or feel about it. Our goal is to bring our shows as close to the audience as possible and to give them an experience that can only be had at a live theatrical production.
Our process has evolved, and will continue to do so as we
see how the audience and our actors relate to the approach and the performance.
It will adjust as much as necessary to remain relevant to our audience. By
stamping a method with any label, especially one with such connotations as
“Original Practice,” we suggest something finished and complete. This also
supposed that the audience is frozen into certain attitudes, which is another
impossibility. As performers our methods must be fluid, and we must be willing
to let go of ways of working that we may have held dear if they no longer serve
the audience. This does not mean playing to the lowest common denominator (but
there is always room for it), but it does mean respecting the audience,
challenging them when necessary and always remembering that the performance is
for them and not us.
The Unrehearsed Shakespeare Project’s practices make our
productions unique. As we grow, those practices will have to evolve to fulfill
our mission, and as they change they will certainly get farther from what many
people consider to be “Original Practices.” Nevertheless, everything we do will
always be “original.”
-Andy Kirtland
The Unrehearsed Shakespeare Project
