Learning Journal One

It has been three weeks since we started class... I think. Once again, in Russ's class I have been asked to consider concepts that I have never considered in the past. During the duration of the semester I hope to learn the ins and outs of play-going, understand the differences that can exist between going to a play and reading a play, and how different directors deal with the same plays. It is interesting to think that the actions of a director, and how the players preform can drastically effect a production. In the case of Life Without Instruction I felt, after reading the script, that the play was meant to be a deep and dark exploration of what it was like to be a woman in the seventeenth century, and the hardships that Artemisia had to endure... and in a way it was. The production held at UNB's Memorial Theater left most of the audience laughing and smiling their way out the doors, which is good, I guess... I suppose the play just was not what I expected it to be. I realize that parts of the play are funny, but I would not say that the show is meant to be a comedy, rather, it is a feminist drama; at Memorial Hall, it was treated more like a comedy. Was it maybe the delivery that made it seem like a comedy? Either way, it was an enjoyable show- just not what I expected it to be.