A Critical Analysis of the Play Noises Off by Michael Frayn

Noises Off

On April 2, I viewed the play "Noises Off" by Michael Frayn. This play was presented at the Erie Playhouse, which is located on west 10th street, very close to Gannon's Campus. This play was different from other performances I have attended in the past. The reason I claim this is because it is certainly the first play I enjoyed. Generally, attending plays is not something I find complete interest in. All have been mandatory for the completion of some kind of assignment for class. This one was no different, but I found a lot of the topics to be interesting and humor was used to gain audiences interests alike.

Noise off is a play about a motivated and ambitious director, who has some mediocre actors. It is unique because it's like a play in a play. The crew is trying to put on a play called "nothing on" but things don't go smoothly for the director. It is difficult to keep his crew on task and focused. Within this play there were three acts or segments. These included: the dress rehearsal, backstage matinee rehearsal, and lastly the ruined performance.

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Each of these three acts were accompanied by their own set of problems. Some of these issues included: forgetting lines, losing props, Selsdon not staying away from booze, and everyone second-guessing the director (happened in all acts). Through all three acts, the director is trying to fix each problem, however new ones keep arising. I feel the best solution would have been to find different actors. Because it was very apparent, that these ones had too many problems and not enough determination to get by,

Of all these acts, I feel the funniest was the last one. I enjoyed all the physical humor that was located within. I found it amusing that the cast members were falling in love with one another. The real humor came, however, when jealousy ruined these mentioned love affairs. To many people, these concepts may not seem funny, however, the way the directed acted everything our made it funny. You sort of had to be there to engage in and understand the humor that took place.

During this play, I had the absolute best seating. I was right in the middle, giving me the perfect view. Although my seating was wonderful, the couple in front of me was quite unpleasant. They kept speaking with each other and it distracted my focus. Other than this aspect though, I had no complaints. As I stated earlier, this was the first time I genuinely enjoyed a performance such as this.

From my understanding of the theme, I understood that this play was merely meant for comical relief. I say this because there wasn't a hidden message of higher purpose, which is the case in some plays. I think this idea may help explain why I enjoyed the play as much as I did. I wasn't confused or trying to decipher ancient English. I could enjoy the play for exactly what it was.

This one was meant just for entertaining purposes, but also maybe to show the willpower a director must have. Although, I feel, noteworthy is the fact, that generally these issues do not happen so often with serious actors. I feel these issues would more so go with children who are forced into holding plays at school and not actual adults.

The reason I feel this way is because in high-end productions. Plays that are Broadway, no director would deal with members as immature as this. Performances such as these are quite pricey to even see, and no one would want to view something flawed and unrealistic. The entire point of a play is to become wrapped in something that seems real.

Actors should be highly prepared and able to seem realistic and not as if they are reading words from a script. It takes a lot of hard work and dedication to put on a successful production. I understand that there will be mistakes and error in anything, but the least amount is certainly the best. Critics can be harsh, and that's why the crew and director should put their all into any given performance.

Overall, I had a positive experience with this play. I was very fortunate to be able to see it. I enjoyed the atmosphere, although smaller than what I expected. Everything seemed in conjunction with a typical theatre. I have gained a better appreciation for plays such as this after the viewing of "noise off". I would certainly recommend this play to my friends or even strangers. I feel it can really help brighten someone's moods.

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