"All in the Timing"

I really enjoyed going to see All in the Timing. From the moment I walked I could tell it was going to be an interesting play. There were clocks everywhere, some projected on the floor and others lining the walls of the auditorium. The energy of the crowd wasn't very high at the beginning, but then again I did go to the Wednesday performance. Once things started, though, the audience was responsive. After it was over I found myself discussing my favorite scenes with the group that I went with, almost as if we had just seen a movie on its opening weekend.

Although discussing the event later with my friends reminded me of an after-movie discussion, the actual experience of watching the play was much different than the experience of watching a movie. Live performance is very unique in that the audience is an active participant in the action. A stale audience might have made the actors uncomfortable, and therefore have less energy while doing their work. Fortunately when I saw All in the Timing the audience got into it. In a movie theater there is a different relationship between the individual members of the audience as well. I would feel less inclined to get upset at someone's boisterous laughter at a play. Sometimes members of the audience at a live theatre performance are supposed to laugh out loud, clap, or be shocked and surprised with a gasp. These things actually help to spur an actor on rather than hindering the experience, and so they have become social norms that do not translate to movie theaters.

I thought All in the Timing was definitely an over-all success. It was a fun experience. My favorite scene was the "Variations on the Death of Trotsky", but I think no matter what type of humor someone prefers, this play probably had something for them.