Our Town Essay

Our Town is a play written by Thornton Wilder in 1937. Our Town is a play about the daily life in Act One, love and marriage in Act Two and death and dying in Act Three. The play is about two main characters, Emily Webb and George Gibbs. The play in Act One just goes through the daily life of the characters. Act Two it shows the love and marriage between these two characters and last Act Three shows life after death of the characters. The play has a man called the Stage Manager that is mainly a narrator throughout the play but also takes on the role of people in the town. The Stage Manager knows many thing about the people in the play Our Town.  The Stage Manager steps in, describes scenes, and seems to start and stop the action of the play whenever he wants. The Stage Manager has many similarities to God. The Stage Manager doesn't only know everything about everyone, he can also see into the future. The Stage Manager is also present in every scene watching it all play out. The Stage Manager and God are different because the Stage Manager unlike God makes

The technical aspects of the production such as scenery, properties and costumes also played a keynote in the productions success. The scenery was fabulous it truly made the play. It was very realistic and extremely vibrant. Almost the entire play was performed in one setting, except for the railcar and dance scenes. The house, the main setting, was magnificent with painstakingly placed detail in every corner. All elements in the house matched wonderfully, for example the furniture, the photos on the wall, the telephone and even the trash can. Little bits of detail were everywhere adding to the beautification of the set, for example the lace decorations on the chairs, the etched glass above the front door and even the Christmas tree.

Our Town was “a radically innovative way of presenting a drama” as it was different from other plays of that time and was well received by the audience (“Our Town”). Innovation is one of the major elements of modernism and Wilder effectively used it throughout the play. Our Town was a break from traditional theater and is still performed in many high schools. When many other theater productions were producing plays with luxurious sets and costumes, Wilder experiments with the set and uses “ no curtain, no scenery” and a few props (Wilder 3). This was a huge risk at that time, but was highly appreciated. According to a critic, “by stripping the play of everything that is not essential, Mr. Wilder has given it profound, strange, unworldly significance” (Brantley). Getting rid of the scenery places more focus on the characters making them a vital part of the play. Additionally, many actions throughout the play are pantomimed which allows the viewers to make use of their imagination.

Our Town is a play written by Thornton Wilder set in a small town known as Grover’s Corners. Wilder conjured the Stage Manager to be a representation to the theme of the play. The theme of universality placing Grover’s Corners in view with the rest of the world. Wilder makes a point to the audience that people have a big impact and influence over the next person, whether they were important or insignificant to that individual’s life. Therefore, the Stage Manager emphasizes on this very viewpoint that the lives of certain people are overlooked so are their influences. The Stage Manager himself is a physical embodiment of Wilders own views and opinions of humans and life itself. Throughout the play, the Stage Manager plays various of roles in order to force the realization to the audience into understanding the importance human life and the influence of others.

The movie Our Town was a 1938 American three-act play directed by Thornton Wilder. The movie tells the story about a fictional American town known as Grover’s Corners between 1901 and 1913. Throughout the mover, the director uses meta-theatrical tools to set the play in the theatres where such play was being conducted. The main character in this film is the stage manager who addresses the audience directly. The stage manager also brings in guest lecturers into the play by fielding questions from the viewers as well as filling some of the roles (TheConnection np). The major differences between this play and others are that the actors perform without a proper set and the acting is done without props.

The Stage Manager maintains a somber tone throughout the play that deeply contrasts with the joy perpetually exuded by the other characters. Wilder emphasizes this contrast particularly during the wedding, in which the Stage Manager offsets the “radiant” atmosphere and digresses: “The cottage, the go-cart, the Sunday-afternoon drives in the Ford, The first rheumatism, the grandchildren, the second rheumatism, the deathbed, the reading of the will.” In this passage the Stage Manager describes life as a list of events, thereby expressing his apathy for it. Wilder, therefore, conveys the consequences of recognizing life’s finality. The finality of existence consumes the Stage Manager and causes him to disengage from his surroundings which prevents him from seeing the meaning and importance in a particular moment. His aversion to life is evident when he states, “Once in a thousand times it's interesting.” The Stage Manager merely views life as transient, and despite having the capacity to appreciate it, he is unable to because he only sees value in things that have longevity. Hence, why he is so adamant about putting a copy of the play in the time capsule he mentions because it will be preserved and “the people a thousand years from now’ll know a few simple facts about

Man-made and natural disasters will always repeat themselves differently and the human race has the power to take over it or be taken over by it. This play explores themes of drive and flexibility, as well as the failings of our species. Another theme I believe is for this play is Illusion vs. Reality. Trying to create a "real" world on the stage is what traditional realistic plays do. They encourage the audience to forget that they are watching actors play roles in a fictional play. Wilder continuously interrupts this sort of theatrical illusion to remind the audience that they are watching a performance.

Upon watching the play Outside Mullinger, I began to understand the notion of creating the world of the play. The set design, lighting, actors, and costumes all came together to move beyond the script and create an intimate, and approachable world that the audience could feel apart of. From reading the script, to then seeing it in production I developed a better sense of the plays message.

The play, Our Town, is defined as a "playwright", which involved physical action and representing the externals of human behavior. The play in general

Our Town, created by Thornton Wilder, offer up a light into the ordinariness of life as seen through the eyes of a small population of citizens. The play is broken down into three acts displaying the stages of life from the perspective of the two primary characters George and Emily. Our Town, displays George as the archetypal American young boy. George has all the characteristics of such, he is innocent, kind, and sensitive. He is a good son, and a good friend he has goals and aspirations. He is ambitious, seeking to go to the state agriculture school in order to inherit his uncle’s farm. George is a firm representation of the all-American boy but we see his change as the play progresses. His change is also mirrored by his childhood companion

In the book Our Town, it reveals the stages of two families’ lives and how quickly is passes by. In order to develop the theme of living life to the fullest, Wilder establishes a specific plot, uses literary devices, and implements tone. Wilder begins his play by introducing two middle class families, the Gibbs and the Webbs.

Our Town, by Thornton Wilder (first staged in 1938), has proven to be one of the most popular and enduring American plays ever performed (VORK, 2017). For the first time in 1938, the play was performed for a live audience in Princeton, New Jersey (Weinbloom, 2006). The audience did not agree with Thornton Wilders vision for the play. He along with his play was criticized. Many individuals back then thought the play was a complete waste of talent for Mr. Wilder. Miraculously, when the play was performed in New York, the audience were very delighted with the performances in the play.

Mr. Wilder played the security-blanket-clutching accountant Leo Bloom, who discovers how to make more money on a bad Broadway show than on a good one: Find rich backers, stage a production that’s guaranteed to fold fast, then flee the country with the leftover cash. Unhappily for Bloom and his fellow schemer, Max Bialystock, played by Zero Mostel, their outrageously tasteless musical, “Springtime for Hitler,” is a

Thornton Wilder’s Our Town usually shows moments where the audience is connected to the cosmos and then back to earth. Due to Wilder’s history it is not surprising that he wants to connect to the cosmos. Throughout Wilder’s play time becomes something people lose track of, including the Stage Manager. Wilder goes into detail about how easy it is to take the time someone has on the planet for granted. The characters who are deceased talk about how the living don’t pay attention to their lives during their time on earth. Time is a theme throughout especially in the end when Emily herself realizes that she hasn’t had enough time.

One of the most vital parts of putting on a play is a director who will provide an understandable, and watchable performance. This play was a much easier play to put on as it is based on a classic novel by Harper Lee. From the audiences point of view, the director clearly understood the novel. He gave a very well adapted stage version of the book, however he didn't rely on the audience having read the book, he also created a whole new story through different techniques and fresh ways of telling a story. As a person who has read the book and was a fan of it, and Harper Lee I personally thought that he did it justice and filled some large boots. The director employed very subtle and yet effective staging techniques during certain scenes that required a different atmosphere. Some examples of these techniques were during the scene between Scout and Atticus near the beginning of the play. Here the staging was very central, this provided a sense of a close relationship between the characters. Also, a small inclusion of a chair, or a light immediately makes the scene seem more like a home, and the audience immediately have a different expectation of the scene, for example if an armchair is introduced to the stage then the audience expect a scene at home, however if a desk and computer is introduced then the audience expects a scene at work or in a study and therefore the scene will have a completely different atmosphere.