One of the reasons I love my town is because you never know when you'll suddenly be sucked up into a piece of art that seems to come out of nowhere. That's the advantage of living in a college town, where masterpieces are everywhere. And sometimes, what's happening today can give you a whole new perspective on your past.
When I was in college here, and had to read the plays of David Mamet as a graduate student, I must say, I was less than thrilled. Mamet’s version of “profane poetry” seemed strange to me. His warped dialogue seemed so unrealistic – the back and forth completely out of control. Years later, I heard a woman from New Jersey complain about how people were making fun of Northerners who had heavy “Joisy” accents. I remember she said, “I hate it when people make fun of us. I mean, who tawks like that?” And I started laughing, because I recognized that word, “tawks,” as part of an accent used by so many of my New Jersey relatives.
The same thing happened when I watched Disney’s childish cartoon show, Big City Greens, and listened to all the characters talk in their serious southern accents. I mean, who talks like that, ya’ll, besides all my southern relatives?
But it’s interesting how your perspective about words can change over time. Recently, I was invited to see a David Mamet play that I’d read in the early seventies, Duck Variations. I remember thinking, “Oh, that boring play I read in college? Hmmm.”
But I decided to go to the event because two fantastic local artists, two incredible actors, Tom Miller and Shamrock McShane, were playing the characters in the story. Miller and McShane have won many awards for their work over the years, for plays and movies, including the recent Seven Sides of Shakespeare (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt13812930/) which Shamrock wrote and acted in and Miller directed and filmed on an iPad.
In the play Duck Variations, the two play elderly men sitting on a park bench, watching a raft of ducks swimming and flying around on a local pond. From Mamet’s words, you get the feeling that these two men are somewhere in a city park, and you also get the feeling – deliberate, I’m sure – that these guys know practically nothing about ducks.
But they do know a lot about friendship. They do know a lot about being elderly, about being men, about knowing how to pretend to know all the things they do not know. The actors were absolutely brilliant. I was so surprised by my reaction to the play. I laughed throughout. And I remember thinking, “Wow, David Mamet was really ahead of his time.” The discussion about losing territory, ducks disappearing, the changing nature of nature now seems brilliant. Why didn’t I see this when I was young? Hmmm, maybe because I was young and didn’t get two old guys chattering.
I have to admit, though, Shamrock and Tom nailed it. Their characters come alive so thoroughly that you can imagine them being fathers, grandfathers, experienced sailors charting through life’s journey who know what they know and have seen way more than your average duck. They may not know how to prove it, but they really know how to flShaSAgain, I was surprised by my reaction. Perhaps I have learned a bit over the years, too. But when you hear Mamet’s plays done in person by two incredible actors who make it look so easy, the story that once seemed silly and endless becomes humorous and enjoyable. I guess you just need some perspSective – and you need to see masters of the art at work.
Shamrock McShane Tom Miller