tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2790809561264810693.post6542266799796053578..comments2023-11-07T06:56:59.563-05:00Comments on Ann Arbor Schools Musings: Annie Get Your...Gun?!Ruthhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10531344380743742801noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2790809561264810693.post-87886960741382268192010-04-25T10:36:49.588-04:002010-04-25T10:36:49.588-04:00I got an anonymous commenter on this post that sai...I got an anonymous commenter on this post that said the following, "The sentiments expressed here are a perfect illustration of political correctness in its most awful form. Do you have any idea of how ridiculous you are? In a more sinister vein, PC folks like the blog author are a source for censorship and blocking of free expression." I have mixed feelings about this comment. I don't think it adheres to my goal of being respectful (for example, calling me ridiculous). And yet, because I don't want to be seen as a censor I felt I should quote this in its entirety. On the other hand, I did "reject" it. That was my compromise--you can read it, but only with my commentary. <br />And here is my response: If you don't like my blog, get your own. As far as describing my opinion of Annie Get Your Gun as censorship, I think you partly miss my point. It's not as if there are only a very few plays out there in the world, appropriate for schools. There are many hundreds, if not thousands. Since the choices, in schools, of reading material and theatrical material are entirely value-laden, I am simply sharing my opinion about which values we choose to include.Ruthhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10531344380743742801noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2790809561264810693.post-20101688219364609412010-01-18T11:02:45.328-05:002010-01-18T11:02:45.328-05:00This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2790809561264810693.post-86425167187771922382009-11-10T18:14:48.024-05:002009-11-10T18:14:48.024-05:00Information on how to get tickets to the show: htt...Information on how to get tickets to the show: http://a2schoolsmuse.blogspot.com/2009/11/theater-this-weekend.htmlRuthhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10531344380743742801noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2790809561264810693.post-15706315523157729872009-10-25T16:03:18.998-04:002009-10-25T16:03:18.998-04:00Jerry, Part of me agrees with what you say. Since,...Jerry, Part of me agrees with what you say. Since, in theater, a key part of dramatic tension involves conflict--often about issues that are not so clean and nice--imagining a world of theater without dramatic tension would be a sad theatrical world. <br />On the other hand--when I wrote this, I had seen Annie Get Your Gun (several years ago), but I had not actually read the script. After reading the script, one thing that jumps out to me is that the treatment of Indians is really gratuitous. It doesn't add to the dramatic tension, and I think that if it were referring to blacks or Asians (or most other ethnic groups) it would be considered completely off limits for a high school production. Lines like, "You're dumber than an Indian" are simply racist. I would contrast that with a musical like West Side Story, where both the ethnic differences and the violence are integral to the dramatic tension.Ruthhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10531344380743742801noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2790809561264810693.post-88378935701113721432009-10-24T19:31:54.237-04:002009-10-24T19:31:54.237-04:00I can't wait until we live in a world so polit...I can't wait until we live in a world so politically correct that our theater is an empty, bleach white stage. <br /><br />Seriously - there are legitimate concerns here, but this attempt to eradicate anything remotely offensive to anyone is going to result in the most sterile, uninteresting void of an existence imaginable. <br /><br />Life is not clean, people's inner thoughts are not sterile. I can't think of a single classic piece of literature that would make it past any given yuppie school board's review if it were published today. If we are going to try and purge our society of everything offensive, I hope it at least stops at the stage so I have something interesting to observe at least once a month.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12927061951532010503noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2790809561264810693.post-10351326927574103712009-08-07T22:23:42.446-04:002009-08-07T22:23:42.446-04:00I'm not 100% positive, but I think there are a...I'm not 100% positive, but I think there are a couple of reasons for this. <br /><br />First, the Pioneer Theater Guild is a very large group--it has many parents working very hard on different aspects of it, and that includes raising money. Musicals are typically expensive.<br /><br />Second, another way to look at it is that Pioneer has *had* to have two musicals a year. There are some kids, and theater-goers, who prefer straight plays (I happen to be one of them), but in general, straight plays (by which I mean non-musicals) have smaller casts, fewer roles, fewer large group scenes. <br /><br />Pioneer has been one of the largest schools in the state for several years, and with so many kids who have wanted to participate in theater, they needed to provide plays that accommodated very large casts. <br /><br />Huron historically has not had as large of a theater program (and in any case has been smaller than Pioneer), Skyline is only entering its second year, and Community is a smaller school. I'm not sure how this will all shake out as Pioneer and Huron shrink and Skyline grows. The theater programs will undoubtedly change, and there may be fewer musicals--or different kinds of musicals--at Pioneer. I'm hoping the straight play selections expand.Ruthhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10531344380743742801noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2790809561264810693.post-26594588177646662202009-08-07T17:10:55.318-04:002009-08-07T17:10:55.318-04:00How come Pioneer gets enough money to put on a mus...How come Pioneer gets enough money to put on a musical twice a year, and the other high schools do not?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com