Oleanna on Broadway
Last night I went to see David Mamet‘s Oleanna on Broadway. I was very excited to see Julia Stiles make her Broadway debut. I have been fan of Julia’s since her movie 10 Things I Hate About You. I got to see her in an Off-Broadway version of The Vagina Monologues many years ago. I like that she went to Columbia even though she already had a pretty solid career.
I found a deal on Broadway Box for $60 tickets. Whenever possible I like to walk to the theater to purchase the tickets. For one, you save on all the crazy ticket charges that ticketmaster or ticketweb usually tack on to your purchase. Also, I feel like the theater always knows where the best seats are. So last month I walked to the theater with my discount code, asked the seller which day I could get the best seats and bought 2 tickets. It was worth the effort because the tickets were about half off and they were amazing seats! I am definitely planning on purchasing tickets this way again.
Now on to the show… I thought it was extremely thought provoking. It was only one act (no intermission) and there were only two performers in the entire play (Julia and Bill Pullman). The set stayed the same for the entire play. So this was not a big budget Broadway production. Nevertheless, I enjoyed it immensely. The action revolved around a meeting between student (played by Julia) and her college professor (played by Bill Pullman). The audience sees the original meeting and the follow up meetings discuss what happened in that meeting. It is interesting to think about perspective and why each character feels the way he or she does. I got the strong impression that the audience did not like Julia Stiles’s character. The character did not behave in a conventional way but she never lies or deceives, she just calls it like she sees it.
The play led to a great discussion on my walk home that reminded me of my days in college theater classes. I think if you have any interest in higher education and enjoy straight plays (not musicals) you should check out Oleanna before it is gone. And if you see it and disagree with my opinion of Julia’s character, please leave me a comment so we can discuss it!
