Tonight I went to see a theatre production--a good theatre production-- at the Gamm theatre in Pawtucket. It was a festive version of Shakespeare's Twelfth Night with a minimal set and a true grasp of the old English. One of my former profs from college invited me to attend (for free) with her class, so I rode to the show in a yellow school bus filled with college students. In case you missed it, I just need to reiterate that, yes indeed, I rode a yellow school bus to a trendy theatre in Providence.

While on the bus, I conversed with my prof about what has happened in our lives since we saw each other last and eavesdropped on groaning college students wondering how long this God forsaken play would run. On the ride home, as I eavesdropped again, the students sounded surprised that they actually enjoyed the play--finding it humorous, touching and entertaining. The shock and awe in their voices saddened me because they are so ignorant about the stage, about the joy of good writing, about the art of conversation, about sitting still without a constant bombardment of sound and sight, about history. Now, I am not claiming knowledge of all the things above and I clutter my life with sound and sight just like the next person, but tonight the reality of losing wit, dry humor, quiet, art, theatre and conversation deeply affected me.

Over time, schools have siphoned off all the programs that sap them of money. These programs include, but are not limited to, drama, music, art, poetry, creative writing--the programs that take education to the next level. It is very important for students to be well versed in history, math, science, English, etc, but isn't also important for students to understand and appreciate what all of this information has helped man/woman create? The knowledge of the basics is what allows us to take our thoughts to the next level--to imagine a hitchhikers guide to the galaxy, to pen the Gettysburg Address, to sculpt the Thinker, to compose Handel's Messiah, to sing Handel's Messiah, to paint the world in blurred, bright blotches and lines. The basics create a foundation but the arts form our humanity. Through the arts, we learn to communicate, to desire, to create, to design, to emote, to feel--and these are the features that truly separate humans from other animals.

On the way home, my concern lessened because the students responded so favorably to live theatre--and Shakespeare no less; however, if K had not offered to take them, would they have had this experience? Probably not! The majority of people at the show this evening were 60 and older, which is fine, but why were no young people taking advantage of a cheap, fun event on a Thursday night? Because people think of theatre as a cultural experience where you have to get dressed up, put on your thinking cap, be bored and then talk intelligently about the feminist perspective offered in the piece. We have taken the fun out of watching theatre--because I can assure that making theatre is still fun. While I know some scholars would disagree, theatre is not always meant to be analyzed and intellectualized. Instead, theatre rests heavily on feeling--listening to the words, watching the action, using your brain--allowing yourself a moment to reconnect with feelings and emotions in a visceral way. I fear we may lose theatre as we lose the K's in the world, people who make kids see theatre. The theatre is a place for us to be human and feel a range of emotions from anger to love to lust to passion to sadness. It is one of the loveliest forms of expression for performers, writers and audiences alike--it would be a tragedy to let it go.