Friday, December 31, 2010

Best of International Theatre 2010 #1: Ontroerend Goed, ‘The Smile Off Your Face’

Smock Alley Theatre, Dublin
Sept 30 – Oct 3


One could accuse me of laziness. Not only is The Smile Off Your Face not a show that debuted in 2010 (which is the point of this list) and in fact came onto the scene a few years ago, but it is also a show I have already written about (the link to that post is on the bottom of this one). I gave The Smile Off Your Face #1 not only because it was hands down the greatest theatre experience for me this past year, but one of the most magical experiences of my whole life.

Smile is basically a mirror, ironic as it is seeing as you’re blindfolded throughout. Much like the 101 scenarios, this show has the ability to get under the surface of your very being. Whereas the Oneohone example I wrote about prompts you to reflect on your courage, or lack thereof, Ontroerend Goed softly treads the peripheries of your intimate, personal life.    

The magic of this show lies in the trust between your disabled self and the mysterious performers who surround you, as you together draw back the curtain of the syncretism of theatrical illusionary and reality. This material is the fabric of theatre, of art, and never quite has one sailed (or pushed in a wheelchair) so close to this sight of the real and unreal being so beautifully harmonized.

Beautiful.


The Smile Off Your Face review:
http://musingsinintermissions.blogspot.com/2010/10/ontroerend-goed-smile-off-your-face.html#more

Other Ontroerend Goed …
Internal:
http://musingsinintermissions.blogspot.com/2010/10/ontroerend-goed-internal-blind-date.html#more

A Game of You:
http://musingsinintermissions.blogspot.com/2010/10/ontroerend-goed-game-of-you-about-you.html#more

Teenage Riot:
http://musingsinintermissions.blogspot.com/2010/12/best-of-international-theatre-2010-5.html#more

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