Going to the Theater

They always say that college is the place for you to fall in love with the things you never dared to do. This includes things you even actively avoided before. Well, until recently, that had been the case with me and theater. Against all prognoses, to my dad’s satisfaction, and due to my amazing A&I professor, over the past several months I have fallen in love with live theater.

I attribute this to the many opportunities that Carleton and Minnesota have granted me to enjoy live performances. From big to small, from classic to mold-breaking, every single event has made my appreciation for the art grow. In honor of theater, here are short reviews of every production I have watched since coming to Carleton.

The First One – The Comedy of Errors

This was the one that started it all. If you have read my blog before, you might remember that during the fall term, instead of having a midterm exam, my A&I class went to the theater in Minneapolis. Initially, I dreaded it solely because it was a Shakespeare play, something high school taught me to fear and dislike. Watching one of his plays live for the first time forced me to reconsider everything I thought to be true about theater.

Though a minimalistic production by Ten Thousand Things, this was a most joyous experience. The palpable passion of everyone involved, as well as the little modern tweaks to the script, had me laughing throughout the entirety of the show. I will be forever thankful to the English department for dragging me to this amazing play.

At Carleton – Everybody

Shortly after watching The Comedy of Errors, our class was invited to attend one of Carleton’s very own productions. We journeyed to the Weitz Center for Creativity and sat through a performance of Everybody. It was a strange play, to say the very least. What was so cool about this particular production was that the casts’ roles were chosen at random at the start of the play. In other words, you would get to see a unique version every night!

Carleton Sponsored – The Tempest

By now, any disdain that I had for Shakespeare’s work has been completely eradicated. Proof of that is how quickly I jumped to the sign-up form when I found out that the Student Activities Office was sponsoring a trip to the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis to watch Shakespeare’s The Tempest. Despite having never even heard of the play beforehand, I did not hesitate to reserve a seat for myself and promptly invited my friends to sign up too.

We went to the theater on a Wednesday night, ignoring every assignment due, every unwritten essay, and every final exam we had to study for. [Disclaimer: these risks were taken by semi-experienced Carleton students with decent time management skills. Do not try this at home.] You will not be surprised to know that it was absolutely worth it! The production value at the Guthrie was higher than anything I had experienced before, and that made the experience all the more immersive and consuming.

I cannot wait to go back to every single one of their future shows.

On My Own – Hadestown

Remember how I said that I was never a fan of the theater before coming to Carleton? Well, I sort of lied. I never liked conventional theater, but for a couple of years now I have been in love with Broadway musicals. Or, I should say, with their soundtracks, for I had never gotten a chance to see any of these shows performed.

Thanks to my mom’s generosity, this changed right before spring break! Some good friends drove me to the cities and dropped me off at the Orpheum Theater. There, I got to enjoy one of my favorite stage musicals. The experience was everything I could have asked for and more. Watching the songs I have become deeply acquainted with performed live was otherworldly and truly special.

I hope I will continue to develop my appreciation for theater. I’m excited for many more incredible opportunities like these in the coming years.

Fátima strives to learn everything about everything, but is especially interested in Sociology/Anthropology, Psychology, and Disney! As a freshman, she can’t wait to introduce her peers to her native Guatemalan culture, put in practice her newly acquired ASL skills, and play in the snow for the first time. In her free time, Fátima can be found watching cartoons, poorly playing the ukulele, or desperately missing her dog, Cosmo. Meet the other bloggers!