Walter Plingerest said "It doesn't sound like a very interesting concept for a play."

Really? ?

It sounds to me like you are pre-judging the end result (...and may also be a bit confused in your use of the word 'concept'). Sorry to say it, your statement above doesn't sound like a very interesting argument.

I actually think the concept IS very interesting. Verbatim transcripts, real people's thoughts, actual dialogue, true characters, local controversy and honest drama being somehow crafted into a piece of live theatre is a fascinating concept, which I have never seen done before and so I consider it highly original and therefore very interesting.

Now what you maybe meant to say is that you didn't think it would make an interesting play. That would still be showing your prejudice, but I'm not prepared to argue against you yet (if that's really what you meant to say) because it may yet turn out to be the case. I would rather wait until I had SEEN the play before I argue over whether it turned out to be interesting or not.

And you really have exposed a can of worms here. I don't yet know what you WOULD consider interesting, but I am already finding that I disagree with your way of expressing it. There's a fairly high chance that I may be misrepresenting you, and that the simpleness of your statement does not accurately reflect the depth of your experience, taste and opinion in art. Yet somehow you have managed to make a similar error in your protest, making hasty judgement of a concept for a play which has not been formed yet.

Isn't it interesting how what we choose to reveal here can be interpreted in a myriad of ways? We may not always express ourselves the way we'd like, but even when we do, we put ourselves trustingly in the hands of our audience, for them to take and do with as they will. And they in turn get analyzed, interpreted and criticized for how they choose to respond (as all of you are forming or modifying your opinion about me as you read this..!).
It's all highly subjective, it's all personal, and yet we can't take it personally. And yet we still do.

The very act of writing here is ART. It's expression put on display for an audience. And it's a collaboration. You get to contribute, and change it into something else, yet you can't fully master or control it. It's a living entity, with a rather Cartesian quality: We think, therefore it is.

The 'Rock Apocalypse' example may not be the most appealing or well expressed story, but the drama of the social dynamic going on between the lines is absolutely the most fascinating part. What is it that draws us all to read further, to take sides; to posit and posture and pounce upon opposing points of view? We are simultaneously engaged in a dialogue about what constitutes art, what constitutes criticism, the nature of theatre in general, and what we find entertaining...and we express it through degrees of passion, wit, and the logical and poetic structure of our language. Through conflict and style there is drama, and in the words of those who craft it, it takes form.

It sounds to me like a very interesting concept.

Someone should write a play about it.

Cheers,
Craig

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Stop using AmericaniZed spelling Graig. And I am assuming you're defending a project you're involved in. Good for you.

Thanks Neville, for the humbling compliment.

I agree, I don't visit here anywhere as often as I used to, which is a shame because I enjoy the discussions I come across, and the people who I used to frequently encounter here.

However as to being involved....well actually I am, slightly!
I know Kate, and she asked me to read a prepared monologue for the project at the recent Blue Room launch...which inspired me to return to this forum to check out what it was all about. I don't know whether I am likely to be involved in the actual show or not.

The parallels weren't lost on me (nor do I imagine on anyone else who puts two and two together) that I was at one time infamous here for posting many opinions, arguments and theatre criticisms. So the temptation to join the discussion in this particular topic and argue on behalf of a show I have an inside link to was (and still is) wickedly irresistible. That doesn't diminish my argument - to support a concept I find brave and interesting - as I still have no personal creative or vested interest for or against the project. For any who remember, my reputation would attest that I am only going to argue for an idea I think holds fair merit, and would equally criticize it if I thought it deserved it...regardless of who I know or how they may connect to me.

And back to Walter Plingerest: As I said, I'm not defending the project yet, other than to take issue against those who cut it down before it's even been born. Whether it's good or not, and whether I'm involved or not are both yet to be seen. My only issue with you was your dismissiveness, with a comment that didn't really contribute an argument. Feel free to come back with a stronger, better supported point of view and I will take it on board.
Like Thomas Jefferson I may not like what is being said (by you, or by Kate, or by anyone here), but I will defend to the death their right to say it. Well maybe not to the death...but I will at least bore everyone to death extolling their (and my) right of expression!

...Nice little distraction to jump on the spelling. Believe me, I use that technique a LOT, so it's about time someone threw it back at me.

You can call me Graig if you want, it pretty well sounds the same. So if I prefer AmericanIZED to AngliCISED spelling it doesn't really matter as it all sounds the same (actually, the Americans always spell it how it sounds, whereas the Anglo Saxons for some unfathomable reason never do). Well done on picking up my errors . (That used to be my little trick, as I was once the biggest spelling-Nazi here).
The main reason I perpetuate American spelling here is that the inbuilt spell check in all my web browsers gives me unsightly wiggly red error lines unless I do otherwise. The other reason is I find IZE much more aesthetically pleasing....and otherwise, what the hell is the letter Z for??

In fact, what is the letter C good for?

Yours,
Kraig.

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