According to the director’s note on ShowGram, Our Town was Thorton Wilder’s response to his dissatisfaction with the state of theatre at the time which was hallmarked by such escapism.
The play places Emily Webb’s very relatable ordinary life on stage, allowing the audience to come away with reflections on the importance and beauty in their own lives as opposed to escaping from them. Our Town is also unique for its use of metaphysical theater.
Metaphysical theater not only breaks the fourth wall (the imagined separation between the audience and the events on stage) but also actively joins the reality of the audience with the imagined reality created on the stage. Wilder uses the character of the Stage Manager as a bridge between the audience and the characters.
The Stage Manager becomes this bridge by speaking to both audience members and characters alike, the note said. The Morristown High production will emphasize the breaking of the fourth wall by expanding the playing space off of the stage and into the audience. The entire theater will become Grover’s Corners, and therefore, each audience member a citizen.
Tickets available at: http://www.mhstheatretix.org/
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