We queued up out in the sun for what felt like an eternity to get the best seat, or rather stands, in Shakespeare’s Globe. I was leaned up on the stage and it was certainly the best view I’ve had of a play. One of the first things I took away was that this production of Mother Courage and Her Children was so wonderful when it came to world building. The costumes and set design immediately placed us in an apocalyptic world. Brecht’s work also built such strong characters. They were all very real and human, but we weren’t given direct back stories of them or how they got to be where they are. Each person was also a complex individual, each with their own motivation in life and reasons for doing what they do. This leaned into Brecht’s style of alienation through a lack of full understanding of a many characters. This was also achieved, of course through the death of characters. The often cruel and abrupt deaths of characters created a jarring effect in the audience. This was also more plainly done with sound. The incredibly loud and shocking sound of the gunshots and bombs certainly pull you out just as you’re leaning in.
There was a particular moment in which our “emotional immersion” was interrupted that stood out to me very heavily. Mother Courage has just finished her song about simply being another number, another cog in the machine. Michelle Terry’s performance was so excellent and the song was tragically comedic, therefore, it won a solid round of applause from the audience. However, as people continued to cheer, Kattrin came in absolutely broken. I was shocked by the continued applause for the previous song despite the horror on Kattin’s face in that moment. We were so absorbed and it took so long for us to shift out focus to the matter at hand. I almost felt guilty. I thought that moment created an incredibly quick and effective switch in the mood of the play and audience.
This show, of those that we have seen, has certainly been my favorite. In fact, it has likely become my favorite show in general. It was a perfect balance of comedy and tragedy. The characters were real and the messages were buried rather than spelled out for us. Brecht slowly guided the audience to the point he was making. With such light guidance, there was much room for interpretation. Audiences were given the chance to come to the conclusion on their own. The music was wonderful, the acting was phenomenal, and on top of all of this, it was performed in Shakespeare’s Globe. Despite standing for hours in the heat, the brilliance of this show made me forget that my feet hurt. I stopped feeling the ache in my feet and the sweat dripping down my nose and I was left standing there wanting more. I felt it all throughout this one show; I laughed, I cried, I grieved, and I grew. The experience I gained was simply indescribable.
Theatre in London U of A 