The Divine: A Play for Sarah Bernhardt Alexandra St Germain

Mr Constan, the man himself

The Spatial Experience

When if first entered the Reitz, I was honestly surprised because I never really knew there was that big of a theater inside of it. It was so well kept and very beautiful. When my friends and I were seated, we were placed literally in the corner of the theater on the north side. I was bummed out because I couldn’t see the entire stage from where I was, but as soon as the lights lowered for the play to start, I realized I was completely wrong. Right next to me burst out the actors of the play in perfect harmony and circled their way onto the stage area. Sarah’s dress actually skimmed my knee! Other than giving me a near heart attack, it was quite exhilarating. The auditorium wasn’t very large itself, but like I said before, I didn’t know that the Reitz had a theater this large inside of it.

Claudia Cotto, Miranda Valcarcel, me!

The Social Experience

I went to the play with my best friend Claudia and our friend Miranda. Miranda and I are not really very close, but going to the play with her definitely made us closer. Claudia and I were worried that she would feel awkward around us, but the fact that we had the class and assignment in common brought us closer together. Before going to the actual play, all three of us read the requirements and a background of who Sarah Bernhardt actually was. I feel as though the Good Life revolves around the relationships that are made while growing up, and being able to grow old with the idea that you spent a good part of your life surrounded by people who appreciated you. I definitely can say that I found friends that will be with me for a lifetime.

Claudia and I

The Cultural and Intellectual Experience

One of the biggest issues addressed in this play was the issue of poverty, and child labor. We do not have many of these problems as middle class American citizens, but it is very important to remember that there are parts of the world today were this is still a gross reality for many many people. This play helped remind me that this is true, and how huge of an affect it can have on families who are just trying to get by. This subject has to do with my personal life in the sense that my own mother had to go through something like this. She is from Bolivia, and in Bolivia things are actually much worse than they even are in this play. Children beg for jobs to support their brothers and sisters. Sacrifices that are much worse than having to become a priest are real life for most of the population.

Miranda, Claudia, and I

The Emotional Experience

This play allowed all of us the chance to open our eyes to the world and how it was before we all had the privileges and blessings that we have today. Our grandparents and even some of our parents had to live through times like this in the United States, and it took a lot of hard work to become the nation with the labor laws and healthcare that we have today. This helped me come clean with my thoughts in the sense that it helped provide me with a refreshed outlook on life. It allowed me the opportunity to reflect on what life could have been for us, and realize that some people still live this as a reality. It helped me realize how truly blessed we all are.

during the talkback, the question that was asked was, "to what extent do you think the theater brings about social change?" I think that the theater brings about social change by discussing topics that would typically be difficult to talk about in real day to day life. It allows us to open our minds to the things that we are not used to.

Created By
Alexandra St Germain
Appreciate

Credits:

I took all of the photos

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