It's A Wonderful Life: A 1940's Radio Play

            I went and seen It’s a Wonderful Life at SVSU on November 30, 2011. It was co-directed by David Rzeszutek and Ric Roberts. I knew the story before I went in to see the play, so I kind of had an idea of what I was getting myself into. The only problem is that I wasn’t completely aware that this play was actually going to be performed as a radio play! So instead of the actors memorizing their lines, they stood up to mics, hardly moved, and read directly off of their scripts. While I do understand what they were trying to accomplish, an old fashioned feel with a 40’s type of innocent cheerfulness, but it just didn’t work when being watched. When I go to watch a play, I’m doing so with the understanding that I’m going to sit and enjoy a story that will be played out in front of my eyes. So when I sat down and started to watch It’s A Wonderful Life, I was seriously disappointed. I did not pay money to watch actors refuse to act! I feel bad saying this because the play was well performed for what it was, these actors would be perfect voice actors, but I just couldn’t get into a play that was just being read to me!

            I guess I should speak about other aspect as well, like the actual actors. I found it strange that professors and not students played the two main characters, George Bailey and Clarence the angel. This was interesting to me because I usually expect students to be acting for credit or to further their skills. The professors have already proven themselves so it seems a little unprogressive to have them be the two main characters. Nevertheless, both of these adults were great performers, their voices seemed right in character, since all I can judge are their voices because they didn’t act anything out!!! After going to a couple of plays at SVSU I am starting to recognize actors who are consistently in these plays It is fun be aware of these main actors, because it is fun to watch them grow as actors. One of the actors I remember specifically from Incorruptible when it was performed a couple weeks ago. He was very funny in the previous play and just as entertaining in this one. Overall though, I have to say that it would have been much easier for me to write about this performance if there was actually a performance. This radio play knock off was definitely not what I was looking for and I possibly should have picked a different play to go and see.