Hello Beautiful People,
On March 26th, I had the pleasure of attending the first preview of The Testament of Mary, which officially opens April 22nd and runs until June 16th at the Walter Kerr Theatre.
I am in awe of Fiona Shaw.
Whatever opinions you may have on the show, let’s get something clear right now; one cannot deny the fact that Shaw was outstanding. To utter anything to the contrary is just false. I’d urge all people to see this show, but especially theater students, actors, and theater professionals, as there are countless things to learn not only by watching the performance of show, but by paying attention to how the lighting, musical, and scenic elements come into play, let alone Shaw’s performance.
Photo by Megan Minutillo
The current running time of The Testament of Mary is 90 minutes, and for 90 minutes, Shaw gives you her heart, her soul, her sweat, and her tears. She commands a presence that, to me, is unparalleled as of lately. You simply cannot tear your eyes away from her. The voice and power that Shaw possess is epic. Raw pain. Unconditional love, humor, admiration, guilt…she expresses them all with grace and mastery.
She is outstanding.
It’s a sort of New York magic to be able to be part of a first preview, and the energy in the audience while watching this play was just electric. There’s a reason why Shaw took three curtain calls that evening. And just think, it was only the first night.
Now, as I approached the theater, there was a protest outside.
This is a story about the Blessed Mother. The Virgin Mary. A figure that I grew up admiring, and that play did not change this for me in the slightest. For some, this may be a touchy subjects to stay away from, but as a wise man recently told me, this is a subject that artists feel the need to get close to.
And really, what’s the problem with that?
Colm Tóibín is an outstanding storyteller. His use of language is stunning. It’s beautiful to the ear, and it grabs hold of your heart. He has created a show that stays with you, long after you leave the theater. He has created a show that makes you think.
I am not going to go into the specifics of the script, nor am I going to attempt to recall things line by line. What I will say is this – there is nothing malicious in this show. It is a story about a mother’s love for her son. It is a story about a parent wishing that they could have done more to protect their child. It is a story about love. It is a story, and I do believe that has slipped the protestors memory.
Protestors.
There are few things in life that truly irk me, puzzle me, and anger me at the same time. Book burning is one of them. Protesting something that you’ve never even seen before is another. As I walked to the theater, there were protestors. A group who stood, very peacefully with signs clearly displaying their abhorrence to this show. They hated this show. They wanted to discourage others from seeing it. They hate this show, they wanted to discourage others from seeing it, and yet they had not seen it.
They. Had. Not. Seen. It.
How do you hate something that you’ve never seen? How do you protest and march and try to tear down something that you are not fully informed of? Yes, there was a book. But this was the first time this play had been done in the world, and you didn’t even see it before you tried to spread hate about it.
Why do we not operate under logic anymore? We chase ideas that we think we’re supposed to have, without thinking first. Would it not make sense to actually see something before you start tearing it down or spewing dislike? Here’s an idea. GO to the theatre, and ask questions about the production, find out the reasons and the motives for choices, I promise you there is always a reason. Ask yourself, is dialogue not better than a protest?
Imagine what the world could accomplish if we talked to one another, rather than at one another.
If you can, go see The Testament of Mary, it’s definitely worth it.
Live, Love, Learn,