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Good excuse. Legolas Send a noteboard - 31/01/2010 10:39:13 PM

I guess my contention is that if sf/f is more than special effects or worldbuilding, why isn't it popular in theater? Basically, why aren't there more District 9s (or, you know, movies that are like District 9, except they don't suck )? And why are there almost no serious sf/f plays/musicals?

If one of the powerful abilities of sf/f is that by removing preconceptions of our world, it allows us to view certain truths about humanity, why isn't that reflected in other media? Maybe because the effort of removing preconceptions of our world takes so much time and worldbuilding, which isn't conducive to theater. But I'm pretty sure Larry would dispute that if he and I would stop arguing about the importance of theater.

I suppose I'm issuing a challenge of sorts to the stalwart defenders of sf/f. If the best of the genre is more than worldbuilding, if it focuses so heavily on character development, for what reason is it that sf/f doesn't show up in a medium that is primarily dedicated to character development?

There's at least one critically acclaimed sf/f play. I think Waiting for Godot is undeniably fantasy. I want to know why there aren't more Godots.


I could answer this better if I knew more modern plays, I suppose. But take a seminal play like Sartre's Huis Clos (I think in English they call it "No Exit"? the one that spawned the infamous "Hell is other people" line). It's heavily implied, or perhaps even stated explicitly, I don't know, that the characters are not merely in a closed room, but that they are in some kind of limbo or even hell. Clearly there is a supernatural setting of some sort. But it's not fleshed out much - because it's a play, you don't spend too much attention on your setting.
This message last edited by Legolas on 31/01/2010 at 10:39:49 PM
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Obviously I have musicals on the brain. - 31/01/2010 06:36:33 AM 917 Views
Musicals are tricky things to do - 31/01/2010 07:57:44 AM 646 Views
Dr. Horribles' Sing A Long Blog - 31/01/2010 08:37:37 AM 655 Views
I think so. - 31/01/2010 04:25:27 PM 613 Views
There is a musical episode of buffy.... - 31/01/2010 09:50:22 AM 749 Views
Very interesting question. - 31/01/2010 12:19:51 PM 853 Views
Adam's Hitchhiker's Guide stories were originally radio plays - 31/01/2010 06:16:42 PM 755 Views
Nonsense. - 31/01/2010 07:22:25 PM 634 Views
I feel like I'm a broken record, telling you to re-read what I actually said - 31/01/2010 08:40:17 PM 645 Views
Yes, well, it was a fairly weak defense when you started using it. - 31/01/2010 09:23:49 PM 746 Views
I think you're underestimating the number of theater fans - 31/01/2010 10:00:52 PM 661 Views
I'd have to agree with you - it has become more of a niche. - 31/01/2010 10:16:02 PM 660 Views
I don't know, I've seen a theater adaptation of The Hobbit, for instance... - 31/01/2010 10:11:47 PM 684 Views
Not quite sure what I was thinking about cinema either. My defense was that it was 3 in the morning. - 31/01/2010 10:26:03 PM 602 Views
Good excuse. - 31/01/2010 10:39:13 PM 785 Views
Yes it is. - 01/02/2010 02:25:44 AM 829 Views
I would definitely count Little Shop of Horrors among some sort of sf/f mold. - 01/02/2010 12:56:40 AM 798 Views
Definitely. But again, it's campy and ludicrous. - 01/02/2010 02:25:00 AM 696 Views
Well, of course. That's what makes it awesome. - 01/02/2010 04:57:07 AM 701 Views
Re: Well, of course. That's what makes it awesome. - 01/02/2010 07:58:32 AM 678 Views
There are tons of them - 01/02/2010 08:37:35 AM 841 Views
Good point. - 01/02/2010 10:28:07 PM 747 Views
It is 19th century and it is opera . . . .. - 02/02/2010 06:55:28 PM 755 Views
Return to the Forbidden Planet - 06/02/2010 10:45:49 AM 834 Views
Yes, Wicked does. *NM* - 07/02/2010 04:19:56 AM 258 Views

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