January 15, 2008 – 6:35 am

Sentences 95-101

The series concludes:

95) Where are the new forms of theatre that give way to exciting changes and that shock and titillate?

96) Are we simply recycling bad ideas?

97) The heart of exploring what one bottles up and censors.

98) Theatre is stymied by the fact that it is an insider’s game that rewards connections over merit.

99) Theatre ought to get its game face on, as there is a lot of competition for entertainment dollars.

100) Nobody is going to give you a medal for being poor.

101) Theatre is being comfortable with asking those uncomfortable questions.


Well? That’s it.
Praxis Theatre’s 101 sentences about theatre. Thanks to everyone who contributed to this project, including Andrew Zadel, Danny Waugh, David Galpern, Greta Papageorgiu, Ian Mackenzie, James Murray, Jo Chim, Laura Nordin, Leah Wahl, Meredith Scott, Michael Wheeler, Paul Hardy, Shaun McComb, Simon Rice and Tania McCartney.

And thanks again to George Hunka, whose 95 sentences about theatre was the inspiration behind this project.

Click here for the series introduction and for the complete list of 101 sentences.

So. What are we going to talk about now?

By Ian | Posted in 101 sentences about theatre | Comments (9)
January 10, 2008 – 5:15 am

Sentences 90-94

The series continues:

90) Theatre is the medium that requires the most cooperation and the most conflict.

91) Movies are better than theatre because they can reach a wider audience.

92) Theatre is better than movies because each show only happens once.

93) Think about it.

94) Is it possible to understand theatre that’s performed in a language I don’t speak?

Click here for the series introduction and for a complete list of sentences so far.

By Ian | Posted in 101 sentences about theatre | Comments (0)
January 3, 2008 – 5:07 am

Sentences 85-89

The series continues:

85) The best theater happens unplanned.

86) True theatre experience: I clenched my fists and alternated between wanting to fall asleep and wanting to scream.

87) Theatre is not now, nor has it ever been, in trouble.

88) The tingle in my arm hair when theatre transcends the gap between performer and spectator – to be truly challenged and truly included even for a split second.

89) You have to want to make the other person feel good.

Click here for the series introduction and for a complete list of sentences so far.

By Ian | Posted in 101 sentences about theatre | Comments (0)
December 21, 2007 – 5:42 am

Sentences 80-84

The series continues:

80) Where are my glasses?

81) Theatre is better than movies because it can respond to the now (if you’re not waiting for a grant).

82) If a company does become larger and acquires more funding, hopefully they don’t fuck things up by using money to take the short cut around a problem.

83) I’m always afraid that someone is going to forget their lines.

84) Standing ovations aren’t always necessary, it’s nice to take a moment to absorb in silence.

Click here for the series introduction and for a complete list of sentences so far.

By Ian | Posted in 101 sentences about theatre | Comments (1)
December 12, 2007 – 5:52 am

Sentences 75-79

The series continues:

75) Applause.

76) Visual ecstasy explored.

77) Own your shortcomings.

78) Theatre is the playwright’s medium; film is the director’s.

79) Canadian theatre is in a deep, but not irreparable state of affairs: It has decreased funding, an aging audience base and a reputation for being boring and elitist.

Click here for the series introduction and for a complete list of sentences so far.

By Ian | Posted in 101 sentences about theatre | Comments (0)
December 6, 2007 – 6:20 am

Sentences 70-74

The series continues:

70) Where are our First Nations performance traditions?

71) Theatre can fail.

72) Movies are better than theatre because they pay you more.

73) Boring theatre is bad theatre.

74) Canadian theatre has unprecedented opportunity for growth: It takes place in a society that values the arts, has an educated and relatively wealthy potential subscriber base and a whack-load of talented artists.

Click here for the series introduction and for a complete list of sentences so far.

By Ian | Posted in 101 sentences about theatre | Comments (1)
November 28, 2007 – 1:18 pm

Sentences 65-69

The series continues:

65) When the lights go down and I walk out on stage, I feel most alive.

66) Renewal.

67) To turn one’s stomach upside down and then laugh.

68) This shit is addictive.

69) Live bodies moving and making sound to tell a story to other bodies in the same space is a unique experience which has no comparable substitute.

Click here for the series introduction and for a complete list of sentences so far.

By Ian | Posted in 101 sentences about theatre | Comments (0)
November 20, 2007 – 6:03 am

Sentences 60-64

The series continues:

60) Please forgive me for my weak performance.

61) There are no lines across which good theatre is afraid to travel.

62) If one could truly do theatre by oneself, from scratch to sculpture, there would be a lot of more it.

63) There are numerous differences between going to the cinema and going to the theatre, but the most pressing difference that is endangering the life of theatre as a mass artform in North America is the respect needed/demanded by both the audience and performer(s) to exist in a room together selflessly.

64) Theatre is like throwing Christians to the lions, except the lions have to pay to get in.

Click here for the series introduction and for a complete list of sentences so far.

By Ian | Posted in 101 sentences about theatre | Comments (0)
November 15, 2007 – 7:55 am

Sentences 55-59

The series continues:

55) Why do I have to become a film star before people will come to see me in the theatre?

56) Theatre is better than movies because you can travel through time, space, gender and class using only the actors and the audience’s collective imagination.

57) One is transported to a different space and time with little recognition that one is simply watching a performance, instead they are experiencing and performing along with the artists.

58) The best theatre misses being terrible theatre by a hair.

59) Theatre creates dialogue and community.

Click here for the series introduction and for a complete list of sentences so far.

By Ian | Posted in 101 sentences about theatre | Comments (2)
November 7, 2007 – 7:36 am

Sentences 50-54

The series continues:

50) Theatre is the art of bleeding in public.

51) What is most interesting about theatre is seeing/experiencing the collective mind in action – no right, no wrong, just the ‘attempt’ at working through a vision honestly.

52) The human spirit is viscerally attracted to and innately seeks out stories; theatre is just one medium to tell a story.

53) I’m tired of seeing B-list TV celebrities on Broadway who can’t act “taking a break” from their lousy careers and making me suffer.

54) To change the landscape of what is revered and what is questioned.

Click here for the series introduction and for a complete list of sentences so far.

By Ian | Posted in 101 sentences about theatre | Comments (2)