I have just come from seeing To Kill a Mockingbird, and I wondered if anyone else has had a problem with how this play is staged. I was sitting in the Orchestra, Row D, 10 & 12. I know that in some theaters the view from so close and on the side can be problematic. But in this case, the director, Bartlett Sher seems to have deliberately made it worse for no obvious reason.
1. During the entire play, he has a piano player sitting front side (not even playing, just sitting there), entirely blocking the view of the judge in the courtroom scenes.
2. In all the courtroom scenes, he has placed the plaintiff's table downstage left (I can never remember left from right when referring to a stage point of view), completely blocking the witness chair and most of the courtroom. I would imagine those on the left side of the theater in seats similar to mine, were having the same problem with the defendant's table. I can see no reason why these two tables could not have been situated further upstage.
To me, this shows utter disregard by the director and designer for the audience's experience, and that the director's "vision" must come first regardless of the audience's enjoyment of the production. Frankly, I am surprised at Mr. Sher. It certainly ruined the play for me. |
