New York Times critic Charles Isherwood wrote an article this week in which he stated it might be time for him to stop reviewing the plays of a certain playwright. He made a good point; we all have our druthers (ie: we don't like mime, Greek theatre, Molière, Goldoni, the works of at least one Canadian playwright or ballet). The question we have is this: Does a critic have the responsibility to try and understand what an artist is doing or should the critic just walk away? Discuss.
Just recently I have decided to walk away from an opening simply because I had never seem a play by the playwright I could stomach. I sent, instead, a reviewer who liked the writer's previous works. Why increase the agro, I thought. Neil Simon is crap but I can't deny his appeal to a huge audience. Should I repeat my opinion in counterpoint to the audience's every new play. I think not.
ReplyDeletebetter to walk away than walk all over them
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