As I walked into PBK’s Studio Theatre Saturday afternoon, I found myself in the middle of a room where I have taken several acting classes, sitting on a yoga mat and surrounded by a mixture of student actors and student spectators, some of whom I had actually taken an acting class with. There were several theatre professors sitting around the perimeter of the studio, most of whom had taught a few acting classes—again, in that very room. This may not seem particularly odd at first, but when one takes into account the fact that I was about to watch a play about an acting class and that some of the student actors were there not as my peers but as performers in that play, things start to get a little weird.
Modern audiences walk into theatres with a definite expectation: that they will sit quietly in their seats with their hands in their laps and watch demurely as the action unfolds. Occasionally, they will applaud, but only when it’s appropriate. None of these rules seemed to apply in Circle Mirror Transformation. Director Larissa Kruesi ’12 presented her audiences with an environmental theatre experiment—she took what is usually a standard stage play and literally put the audience onstage. The spectators were now participants.
Myself and about fifteen other audience members sat on a circular arrangement of yoga mats in the center of the room and watched as the comings and goings of a six-week acting class unfolded not just in front of us, but all around. The experience was definitely unique—being in the same space as the actors (and even participating in a few of the acting class games) allowed for a personal connection with the performers that one rarely experiences in traditional theatre.
Ms. Kruesi truly deserves acclaim for her direction of a profoundly talented cast of actors. She brought out the absolute best in her ensemble, which consisted of Hannah Lee Grothaus ’14, Nick Hampson ’13, Alison Bushey ’13, Mikaela Saccoccio ’12, and Ryan Warsing ’15.
The ability of these five actors to stay in character while they were literally surrounded by distractions was simply extraordinary. The communion that they achieved among themselves was just as strong as their connection with the audience, if not stronger. At times, I forgot that what I was watching had been rehearsed. The awkwardness of one character entering the room as two others were arguing was as palpable as if it was actually happening. I found myself wanting to jump up and comfort them as they cried or congratulate them when they were happy. At one point, I even felt like I might have to leave the room (which I actually got to do, by the way).
My only regret is that the connection wasn’t just a little stronger. I wish that the other audience members and I had been allowed to consistently participate in the show. Unfortunately, there were times when it seemed as if we weren’t there at all. One minute, I was shaking hands and introducing myself to the characters, but later I found myself watching quietly as they engaged in intensely personal conversations with rather private subject matter. It was as if an irregularly shaped fourth wall had erected itself somewhere in the middle of the studio.
But perhaps I’m being unfair. The fact that Ms. Kruesi was able to reshape this work at all in such a real and tangible way is impressive in and of itself. That really hit home for me in the last few minutes of the show. The play concluded as the audience followed two of the characters, played with breathtaking depth by Ms. Saccoccio and Mr. Warsing, to the front steps of PBK. As they finished their conversation and walked off in opposite directions, I was genuinely sad to see them go. I felt as if they were leaving just as I was really getting to know them. And then I realized that maybe, just maybe, that was the point. Kudos.