Importance of Being Earnest

Play name: Importance of Being Earnest.

Author: Oscar Wilde

Date: Nov. 1st

Location: Cheshire Academy Black Box Theatre

Director: Marc Aronson

Actors: Krystal Charter, Tas Fox, Zoe Genden, Mao Inoue, Jiaxin Li, Shuting Liang, Yuanjun Luo, Amelia Williams, Huijin Zheng

The Importance of Being Earnest starts off with two friends, Algernon, and Jack’s argument and conversation about double life and this man called Earnest. Jack fell in love with Algernon’s cousin Gwendolyn but his proposal was refused at the first time by her mother Lady Bracknell. Later on is the story between Algernon’s love with Jack’s ward Cecily. The conflict of the plot is when Algernon and Jack both uses the fake name “Earnest” and both ladies all fell in love with this name. Conflict breaks out when the ladies find out that their name isn’t Earnest but both couples were still in love with each other. In the end, Jack’s actual identity was found, who is actually Algernon’s brother and gaining the name “Earnest” from his father. By that, the play ends happily with the couples being together. The major theme that I discover from the Cheshire Academy’s production is the sense of playfulness. Although the play is supposed to be a comedy which makes playful a common thing among the players, still the funny details that actors have performed that came from their own sense of humor are now being adapted on stage and coming out from the character themselves. On the director’s note, it mentioned one thing that I find interesting. “With the cast also serving as the stage crew”. I noticed some very detailed but interesting thing about every scene change in the play. During a scene change, characters that were on the stage would still make facial expressions and body movements that fit with their character. Even if that somehow connects with the director’s note, I’m still not sure about whether that was intentionally made or no.

The black box theatre is certainly changed. The change of the stage gives a new function to the black box theatre, which is an actual 3D entrance. The old stage suddenly changed to a thrust stage setting, letting the characters on stage acquire a new area and making the play smoother by not being limited to technical difficulties. The main staging area is divided into two parts, left and right. This is for making a contrast between different places such as the scene where Algernon was staying in the garden against Jack’s will and trying to propose to Cecily. During that scene, the contrast between left and right was being adapted into a sense of location. Another example would be in the very last scene. Lady Bracknell is sitting in the left while others except Gwendolyn and Merriman are all sitting or standing on the right. This is another contrast between left and right base on power.  What is also very intriguing is the way that characters position themselves on stage. For example, during the first scene. When Gwendolyn and Jack are together alone, they have this strange preset way of facing each other and then walk in circles. I see this type of stage walking and positioning in movies very often, especially during a fight or communication. Only by presenting such positioning, it can suggest some relationships between certain character and the atmosphere within the scene. Is it tense? It is chill? Everything can be determined not only relying on the dialogue and their tone of speaking. Characters’ positioning and their way of walking can tell the audience what is going on.

From my perspective, I would say Mao is the best actor in the play. I say this is simply because her manipulation of detailed movements on stage is really powerful in the way that she is Cecily who is living in the scene. During the last scene when Tas and Linda were talking, Mao kept here playful small actions with Aaron such as when Aaron was trying to offer her cake and she refuses with a hand gesture. These tiny movements are what gives a scene or a show life. I don’t see a stiff character either on Aaron nor Tas, but they do not have as much caring for detail as Mao has.

I would say the play is definitely a fun experience. It is absolutely entertaining to see my friends on the stage to perform and giving each other roasts. It is a ten out of ten when it comes to entertainment. However, I still see the disadvantage of each actor on the stage. Tas’ acting is perfect, but he seems too stiff as a character, I do not feel like Jack is a serious man, but Tas gave me a feeling of a very serious businessman that is taking a vacation where he is supposed to relax but still being super tight with himself. Aaron played a good jester role and Helen tried her best to act serious, but the pronunciation issue due that the fact that they are Chinese is irritating. They just can’t seem to get a good grasp on how to pronounce certain English words, and when are trying to add tone inside the dialogue to enhance the effect of a conversation, that would easily ruin the whole sentence just because of the pronunciation. I am not trying to be aggressive or disliking certain people. But to be honest, everyone needs some sort of improvement to make the play look like a play, but not a comedic party.