When I entered the theatre, I immediately saw the set. It was very spacious and I thought it looked extremely cool with the placement of lighting on the ceiling. Since I got there pretty early, I got a seat towards the front right where the actors would walk across in front of the audience. It was a really good seat because I was also centered. This made my experience a lot better since I had an up close and somewhat more interactive experience. When the lights dimmed, I felt really excited because I usually really like to watch plays and musicals. Since the theatre was smaller than I am used to, it allowed for better sound and a more in touch experience since there was no need for really fancy microphone equipment. The play itself contributed to the role of the Good Life in that all the characters were trying to seek the Good Life, and ultimately some of them got it while others quit half way or didn't.
I attended the performance with one of my best friends. It was really nice because during intermission, before the play, and after, I could talk to someone about what I just saw, my opinions of the set, and more. On the other side of me during the performance sat a stranger who didn't talk much, but it seemed that he enjoyed the show in that he would laugh really loud during some parts of the play which made me laugh even more. To get ready, I first read a synopsis of the play and then talked to my friend in the picture about it and what he thought the play was going to be about. Going with my friend enhanced my experience in that I had someone to share it with and to talk about it with whenever I wanted. The role of sharing this experience ties into the Good Life in that friends can enhance the Good Life by being there for when you want to talk to someone or simply just when you want to do something not alone. (I have been given consent to use this photo)
The time and place of the story is around 1905 when Sarah Bernhardt was popular. This gave me a glimpse of life during that time rather than the present. The central issue I was say would be the struggles in living in that time period, especially with the differences between being poor and rich. For example, the Talbot family experiences a lower class problem where even Talbot's little brother has to work in a dangerous factory despite his age. Meanwhile Sarah is somewhere far basking in fame and luxury. I knew that the play was about a famous woman from looking it up on the internet prior to the performance, but didn't know exactly what the storyline was going to be like. The play definitely changed my views about the poor versus the rich around that time period. I didn't know exactly how bad the poor were treated, and all the different things that distinguished poor from rich. Since I have been more privileged in my life, it makes me think that I shouldn't take things for granted, and that I should be really grateful for what I have and whats been given to me.
The Divine: A Play for Sarah Bernhardt really let me come clean in that it gave a story of lives that actually probably happened. For example, characters like Talbot were real, characters like Talbot's family were real, the decapitation of the nieces that worked in the factories as children were real at some point, and all the pain and suffering that the poor had to go through were all real at some point in time. This play provided me the opportunity to see something that was actually real at some point in time and I actually enjoyed the play and the storyline.