Anthea Syrokou's Blog - Posts Tagged "theatre"
A Night Out with Shakespeare
After just having published my novel, Eventually Julie, I have been editing my latest novel which is set in Greece and Sydney. My mind took a momentary break from the pebbled beaches, breathtaking views, and mouth-watering Greek appetisers, and wandered to high school memories of long ago - very long ago!
It was a magical night; full of promise and possibility as I climbed the many steps of the Sydney Opera House with my peers and my English teacher beside me. I felt like a princess as I practically floated to the theatre room and allowed myself to be taken on a theatrical journey; something that I had never experienced before at that point in my life.
We were there to learn, but there were no cold, sterile classrooms, noisy corridors, or students talking over teachers. I sat in great anticipation for what was about to ensue.
A sudden silence enveloped the sweet-smelling scented room. I beamed with delight as I watched darkness descend onto the stage, and the curtains unveiled an illuminated setting, and the first scene from a performance that I would remember for the rest of my life. For some it may have been yet another adaptation of Romeo and Juliet; for me it was an invitation to let go of any inhibitions and allow myself to feel, and be moved by the extravaganza that was presented before my young and innocent eyes.
I was left speechless; tears streamed down my face as I felt so many intense emotions: pain, passion, and extreme exaltation. Each of my senses surrendered to the sheer brilliance of it all. Of course, such feelings were all new to me, being a teenager and all, yet I didn't even care if anyone was watching me; even if the coolest girl in our class sat beside me. We were in the theatre - watching Romeo and Juliet - at the Sydney Opera House. To not feel was almost sacrilege.
Hearing the music, studying the setting, wondering how it was all possible, and how it was timed and all put together so masterfully, amplified what I have always felt in my heart; magic really can be created in writing. At that moment, I was the sun and the moon; I could fall in love and whisper sweet-nothings in someone's ear; I could scream at the top of my lungs from a balcony in the streets of Verona. I had been transported to a new world. I welcomed the drama and embraced it, and I realised that such a magical experience was all due to writing.
Life suddenly appeared different; there was a glimmer of hope that magic is not just in fairytales - it is ubiquitous and can be present everyday - even on a "school" night. Life didn't have to just be responsibilities and everyday obligations. We need to pause - to feel and be in the moment.
So as I sit and write, I try to create my own magic on my computer screen. My mind returns to the beauty of Greece, and I remember my magical night at the theatre. I am grateful that I was introduced to a world of reading and to see firsthand how each work can be adapted, and made available for generations to come, because that's what art does, after all. It keeps giving as it lives in the hearts and minds of those who have been in its presence and shapes their today, and their tomorrow.
It was a magical night; full of promise and possibility as I climbed the many steps of the Sydney Opera House with my peers and my English teacher beside me. I felt like a princess as I practically floated to the theatre room and allowed myself to be taken on a theatrical journey; something that I had never experienced before at that point in my life.
We were there to learn, but there were no cold, sterile classrooms, noisy corridors, or students talking over teachers. I sat in great anticipation for what was about to ensue.
A sudden silence enveloped the sweet-smelling scented room. I beamed with delight as I watched darkness descend onto the stage, and the curtains unveiled an illuminated setting, and the first scene from a performance that I would remember for the rest of my life. For some it may have been yet another adaptation of Romeo and Juliet; for me it was an invitation to let go of any inhibitions and allow myself to feel, and be moved by the extravaganza that was presented before my young and innocent eyes.
I was left speechless; tears streamed down my face as I felt so many intense emotions: pain, passion, and extreme exaltation. Each of my senses surrendered to the sheer brilliance of it all. Of course, such feelings were all new to me, being a teenager and all, yet I didn't even care if anyone was watching me; even if the coolest girl in our class sat beside me. We were in the theatre - watching Romeo and Juliet - at the Sydney Opera House. To not feel was almost sacrilege.
Hearing the music, studying the setting, wondering how it was all possible, and how it was timed and all put together so masterfully, amplified what I have always felt in my heart; magic really can be created in writing. At that moment, I was the sun and the moon; I could fall in love and whisper sweet-nothings in someone's ear; I could scream at the top of my lungs from a balcony in the streets of Verona. I had been transported to a new world. I welcomed the drama and embraced it, and I realised that such a magical experience was all due to writing.
Life suddenly appeared different; there was a glimmer of hope that magic is not just in fairytales - it is ubiquitous and can be present everyday - even on a "school" night. Life didn't have to just be responsibilities and everyday obligations. We need to pause - to feel and be in the moment.
So as I sit and write, I try to create my own magic on my computer screen. My mind returns to the beauty of Greece, and I remember my magical night at the theatre. I am grateful that I was introduced to a world of reading and to see firsthand how each work can be adapted, and made available for generations to come, because that's what art does, after all. It keeps giving as it lives in the hearts and minds of those who have been in its presence and shapes their today, and their tomorrow.
