Producing The Play

Firstly, when considering a production like "The Machine Wreckers" a company must adress some problems that they will inevitably run into during the rehearsal and build process. The elephant in the room should be attacked first: The actual steam engine. In 1815, this machine was a monster in size compared to previous industrial inventions, however a director may feel that size is absolutely not enough to materialize the nightmares that these families in Nottingham experience. Many descriptions of the engine in the text include: "gigantic", "all shining, just like gold", "Demon Steam", "...with a sound like a human sigh", "Tyrant Steam", "Enemy of mankind", "Witchcraft and Devilry", "...laughing", "Juggernaut" and "Devil's drudge." The look, shape, size, practicality, and mobility of this man-eating behemoth must be planned out precisely and extensively. Again, this machine actually kills a man and is described as "swallowing him." This begins the talk about safety of the actor (character killed), execution of special technical aspects (i.e. pyrotechnics, moving pieces, fog), and practicality. Another problem posed by this piece is the number of scenery changes that this play has. Twelve scene changes in total, however (depending on the director's vision) if the machine is not to be revealed until the end, the hiding of the machine needs to be adressed in order to give adaquet space for it to exist or move into when the time is ready. Lastly, the killing of Jimmy Corbett at the end of the show, by the out-of-control luddites, should be discussed for reasons of vulgarity, taste, and practicality. Because this killing is brutal and savage (due to the serveness of the group beating) a company should talk about the possibilities for injuries shown and how those injuries will be applied.

Secondly, if this play were to be produced at Sam Houston Sate University, the context of this production would have to be examined. The number of roles and enormity of the town is eminent in discussing the casting. Not only are over 20 named roles, but there extras in several scenes which demonstrate the extreme poverty of Nottingham in the early 19th century. This brings up the issues of double castings, number of costumes needed, and the practicality of quick changes if need be. Many of these roles and characters are children and this too brings many problems and possibilities to the table. Which available students can portray children believably? How many actual children can be cast from huntsville or surrounding areas? Leaving the casting problems, another problem this show poses is the actual content presented in the story. Knowing that Ernst Toller has a biased in telling this story, how will Huntsville receive the themes in this highly propaganda packed story? The play has a very anarchist tone which is mixed with socialist and borderline communist beliefs. Considering when it was written, I don't think anyone would blame Toller for his having issues with the post World War I German government; But some conservative locals and patrons may have a problem with the anti-capitalist ideals.

After reading about many Expressionist productions around the U.S., I have found that many of these shows share common attributes that lend themselves to an expressionist feel. The common goal being the showcase of emotion from the main character or protagonist. These productions emerse the audience into the protagonist's world of emotion, surrounding the character's with elements that focus our perspective. The Goodmen Theatre's production of The Hairy Ape was described as having a "claustrophobic set design" and this would be essential to creating the world that Yank exists and perceives. This tactic is also seen in University of Denver's production of Machinal, as the set designer creating a small enclosed world made of tall boxes stuffed with "random collection of 20th century junk including a bowling trophy, a typewriter, vacuum cleaner hoses, a frying pan, balusters, computer keyboards, etc." This is a prime example of how to show the pyschological distress of the main character battling with the noisey and intruding technological accessories. Isoation is also important to many productions and this is achieved through lighting and staging. Specials and spotlights help seperate the protagonist from the rest in order to draw the focus of the play to the most important character and his or her emotions, rather than the entire story and play.

http://www.popmatters.com/pm/review/70424-eugene-oneills-the-hairy-ape/

http://www.du.edu/thea/designs/Design-Machinal.html