UCLA’s school of Theater, Film, and Television has been busy working on their theater season and about this time of the quarter, productions are finally about to be showcased. The plays vary in theme, but one does have a dark plot that consists of sensitive topics. An Evening of Devised Work: How to Survive an Unnatural Disaster deals with topics such as grief, loss, and suicide, providing a warning notification next to its description on the TFT website. The setup is not a common seats-facing-forward but rather encompasses all four sides of a room. Audience members watch the play from seats placed near the four walls, with the blocking strategically designed to be seen from all angles.
Despite the darkness of the play, the beauty of it consists of the cast and the diverse background brought onto the stage. First year MFA actors, the cultures and languages of the actors are incorporated and although not everyone understands what is being said, what can be felt is how the actor feels in the moment. The use of singing and dancing carries on the plot and proves to be effective when the characters are sharing their stories of life-threatening problems and personal difficulties. Overall, the play does a great job addressing difficulties that everyday people may not talk about or show and demonstrates the power of having a safe space.
An Evening of Devised Work: How to Survive an Unnatural Disaster will have performances on May 25-26 at 8pm, and May 27 at 2pm and 8pm. Location is 1340 Macgowan Hall. This is a non-ticketed, no reservations play!