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What is considered 'Offensive' in Theatre, and are there 'Moral Boundaries' in theatre? (Warning: Swears Within)
I was recently listening to the 'Book of Mormon' Cast Recording, and playing songs for my girlfriend. My girlfriend is not a closed minded or easily offended sort of woman (for example Clerks 2 ranks among her favorite movies), though she is a devout christian.
She was loving the Musical until we reached one specific track.
Anyone who has listened to the soundtrack will no exactly what track I am referring too, and If you have not listened to the soundtrack I highly recommend you listen to it here:
http://www.npr.org/2011/05/09/136054170/first-listen-cast-recording-the-...
The track 'Hasa Diga Eebowai' was just a bit too much for her to listen too, with her requesting me to stop the soundtrack and to listen to something else. Was it the chorus of 'F*ck you God', 'rape a baby' or the 'f*ck him in his c*nt' line which she could not stand ($10 on the latter), but it was the first time I had ever seen her so offended by something she could not stand it anymore.
The Book of Mormon is clearly not to be taken seriously. And im sure that listening to a song such as 'Hasa Diga Eebowai' out of context with the show makes it seem much more offensive than it really is. Dont get me wrong, I love this show. The music is a fantastic parody on Modern Musical theatre with a large dose of the humor of the South Park boys. But it made me think. How offensive is too offensive? Is there a line?
Theatre does not have ratings in the same way that recorded media does. The Book of Mormon is a Broadway show thousands upon thousands of people will see. Is there a warning that you should not take small children or the easily offended to this show?
I want to know what you think.
Is Mormon pushing it a bit too far?
Is theatre the last outlet for censor free art?
...
Always pushing the boundaries
Whilst the material in The Book of Mormon may be offensive to some, all they need to do is not go see the show or, as your girlfriend did, switch it off.
Theatre has always been a haven for the controversial, and it seems to always be a few years ahead of what is considered suitable in a broader mainstream media sense.
Whilst it may seem tame and wishy washy today, South Pacific was highly controversial at the time for covering racial prejudices. Nellie struggles to accept Emile's mixed-race children, while Lieutenant Cable, struggles with the prejudice that he would face if he were to marry an Asian woman. His song about this, "You've Got to Be Carefully Taught", was criticized as too controversial for the musical stage and called indecent and pro-communist.
I think theatre will always be an outlet for censor free art, and will probably continue to be a glimpse into the future for the acceptable standards of other mainstream media.
Theatre's lack of censorship is a breath of fresh air.
I love the idea that theatre is a censor free outlet. Especially after all the controversy that so many movies and tv shows are put through.
You look at a Movie like 'Zach and Miri Make a Porno' (yes, i realise this is the second time I have referenced a Kevin Smith movie. I like Kevin Smith, what of it). Not only did people rage at the title of the movie (some people thought that even the mention of the word porno in a movie title was offensive. Seriously!?) the poster was banned because it has a picture of the title character with somebody's head over his crotch.
'Zach and Miri make a Porno' isnt exactly high art, but I couldn't understand what the fuss was about.
In my limited time in the world of theatre, i dont think I have ever heard of anybody call a show 'offensive'. I have seen people be outraged at interpretations of musicals (Jesus Christ Superstar is an excellent example of this) and be outraged by a portrayal of a character but never about the content.
Thats exciting, and explains why so many people feel so strongly about theatre. Even 'the fine arts' now days are subject to controversial censorship yet theatre very rarely gets people up in arms.
I
I saw this show!
So I saw this show recently on Broadway and I was kinda suprised to see some children with their families in the audience. The theatre is CLEARLY labeled with signs saying that there is offensive language and adult themes. The show itself has a warm fuzzy feel to it and despite the strong language (which was hillarious and got a great response from a live audience) it was a fairly uplifting experience.
2 last thoughts:
-If you have seen South Park - you know what you are in for.
-TV has a sensor, on stage you can say whatever you want!
Children seeing inappropriate shit....
I currently work for a well known Melbourne Theatre Restaurant, and we have children in the audience all the time! It baffles me too, as even if a parent hasn't seen the shows before, one knows what one is in for. As for the censor part, I agree. We keep it as clean as we can, but with a rowdy audience things can get a little sweary. We had a 12th birthday in the other night.......
I agree that it should push boundaries and be a reflection of life itself, and maybe this is it? Maybe parents are just figuring kids see it and hear it anyway, and bring them to the theatre to give it a sense of perspective? I firmly believe that a well placed swear word, or dick joke can be just as funny and clever as Joe Orton singing "If I had a Hammer"
In the case of "Book of Mormon", perhaps they have translated what they do on television so successfully with South Park to the stage, and spoken to young in a language they want to be spoken to in, and not how we believe they should be spoken to? It seems to be working!
Thoughts?
Ashley Weidner | Social Media dude
socialguru@theatrepeople.com.au
Well, as I understand it, the
Well, as I understand it, the Mormon faith wear "protective underwear" to keep evil away. Perhaps there should be long johns on sale in the foyer beforehand. Merchandising saves the day.
As a mormon myself, I am not
As a mormon myself, I am not so much offended by the musical. I have listened to the soundtrack and it's pretty standard for the creators of South Park. There is a lot of funny stuff in there, but I also feel the same as your girlfriend Sean about that particular song. I choose not to listen to it.
People do however, seem to get as upset about the right to view offensive material as those who get upset about the right to censor it. I am also of the opinion that if you don't like it, don't watch it (as Matt mentions above). I think rating systems are a good idea though for theatre. It's good to know what you are getting into, especially if you are dealing with sensitive material.
I for one will not be seeing the musical because I don't think I would enjoy it for the reasons outlined above, but I will not begrudge anyone else the opportunity. We all believe in the freedom to speak our minds so no-one should begrudge anyone else for doing such.
Lastly, in regards to theatre being the last censor free art, I would say it is not. There are plenty of movies that are uncensored. That's what ratings are for and why they are so great. Perhaps free-to-air television and radio is very censored (and movies on aeroplanes) but it is very easy to come by movies, television programs, art galleries and music that is uncensored.
An interesting article from a
An interesting article from a Mormon's perspective:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/on-faith/post/why-i-wont-be-seeing-t...
That was a very interesting
That was a very interesting article, however I get the feeling that he's missed at least half the point of the show. (not his fault, I'm sure he's not listened to the soundtrack). Of course the soundtrack does suggest that mormons know little about the world and its myriad of problems due to living in their own little bubble.
However, it also pokes fun at the apparent absurdity of what they believe in, and not just them, its a poke at religion in general. How all religion has a large possibility of being made up one day because at the time it was a convenient lie. This is shown through the song 'Making Things Up Again' when we're told that lying with a baby will see us 'burn in the fiery depths of Mordor' and of course when Boba Fett turns everyone into frogs (two of the most awesome references in the show, I think). So while it's an interesting article and I think very few people would really believe in the ignorance of mormons to such a degree, I feel the main point of the show is how its so easy to make it all up! So, nice try on the defense, but I think he falls far short of the mark.
Offensive? On Stage and On the Mind.
I saw a musical, it was 'in production' at the time of performance, about infanticide. It was confronting, but not offensive, to me. During an open discussion afterwards some of the audience voiced their disapproval at the subject matter quite strongly. I would very much like to see the finished product. To be challenged to think deeply as an audience member is an invigourating and refreshing experience. Taboo topics CAN be explored on stage but there needs to be careful consideration about how the 'nitty gritty' is displayed to the general public. Grain of salt or Political Correctness? Surely there is a happy, sensible, middle ground.
I believe Scientologists
I believe Scientologists would have been just as outraged by A Very Merry Unauthorised Scientology Pageant!
C***
I adore swearing, it gives me such great joy.
The extremists who complain about profanities often say things like "it's vulgar," or "a sign of a poor vocabulary" or my favourite "it's just not necessary." As Stephen Fry rightly pointed out, many things are not necessary. But we still do them.
Anyway, I'm not a writer. But I'll leave it to someone who is the amazing Howard Barker who regularly uses my favourite word: c***.
"It is not for nothing that the word ‘c***’ operates both as the most extreme notion of abuse and also the furtherest reach of desire, and not only in male speech, and in attempting to eliminate the word the thing itself is eliminated, since nothing can stand for it. Since what cannot be expressed cannot exist dramatically, the attempt to abolish the word becomes an attack on the body itself - a veiled attempt to remove the body from dramatic space."
[You may like the word but we don't, although I'm happy to approve your comment as it adds to the discussion. And yes, I'm aware of the irony of this note. - Ed.]
The essence of satire
For those who have read Martin Esslin's book "The Theatre of the Absurd", there is a lovely quote from playwright Eugene Ionesco. Some of you may be familiar with his play "Rhinoceros"- often performed in masks - touching on the subject of hysteria and blindly following the status quo.
Ionesco says "to laugh at what is terrifying is to overcome it".
This neat phrase explains why people laugh at satire, why people laugh at slapstick, why people laugh at horror movies, why people laugh on roller coaster rides, why people laugh at profanities. With this in mind 'Book of Mormon' is unremarkable in its approach.
For the rampant Christians here who may take offence, just remember that the Bible doesn't always take itself seriously. The book of Tobit (from the apocrypha - the books which aren't always printed) tells a tale of a guy who was blinded by birdshit. The book "Song of Songs" includes a verse which speaks of "thighs of alabaster" and also likens breasts to bunches of grapes. And try as hard as I might, when translating the biblical verses from their Ancient Greek and Hebrew early versions, "Jesus washed their feet" translates as "Jesus splashed their boots" (in the Australian vernacular). In the original language, that's what the author intended. Urinal splashback.
The problem with satirizing satire is that it often misses the mark. James Bond movies with Roger Moore suffered from this. 'Book of Mormon' suffers likewise. "Life of Brian" already satirized religion and blind faith so well, that 'Book of Mormon' pales by comparison. Pity that "Life of Brian" edited out the sketch where Mary visits the rape crisis centre and tries filling in the form to explain how the Holy Ghost is the father of her unborn child. For those here that would ask me to cite my sources, "montypythonscrapbook" is the text you require.
If the Mormon faith hadn't contributed so much to the field of genealogy, they'd be worthy of parody. On this basis the parody is shallow and pointless.
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