A_FB_MND_2008_ 43 AFTER student 2

Transcript

CA = Catherine Allen (Interviewer)
GR = Genivieve Raghu, Undergraduate Student

CA: Ok, so what were your sort of, impressions of the show? How didn you feel?

GR: Erm, it was really unexpected. Put it that way. It was really, really nice to be a part of. I was actually sitting next to err, two really little kids and at the beginning one of them turned around to the other and said, 'I'm not too sure what's happening, I don't know what's going on'. The other one promptly said, 'Oh, well I know, this happens to this, this person is doing that...'  It was amazing! Just like listening to their responses the whole way through the show...

CA: ...learning!

GR: And like, the next thing that happened was the little girl was telling the little boy what was happening, like the roles were reversed and they were so engaged throughout that it was really like heart-warming to kind of just sit there, and have these kids next to you, really engaged in the text, loving what was happening, listening to their responses. And then also, having lots of adults around you too, who were also thoroughly engaged and, I think it really kind of touched everybody. 

CA: What do you think, it was about it, in particular that made it so universal?

GR: It was visually so spectacular. I think tonight, it was may be more the visual that came across like, some people would say about Shakespeare that, the language is the most important thing and that’s the first thing you concentrate on, then, the other things come as an addition. I think what this production is trying to do, the visual was the first and foremost, and the text came second. I mean Im not saying they didn’t get it across but, that seemed to me, that, and the general atmosphere of the piece, and the audience engagement and just wanting to entertain. Yeah, and there was certainly a sense of panto almost in some sections, with, just kind of really, I don’t know, to lighten the audience up. Everybody seemed to be really excited about the story, and the story really came across.

CA: Do you think they sort of drew out, any particular themes or messages from the play, that other productions might not have done?

GR; I think that maybe they looked at the comedy maybe, but they pulled it out of places you wouldn’t expect and I think it, urm, really looked at almost like your bare minimum, and then pulled out a heck of a lot from that bare minimum and using the musicians as well to kind of emphasize their kind of character attributes and that kind of thing. Really fresh.