This link provides a trailer to the National Theatre's production "Saint Joan": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h9lVE7yTW8c. From this clip we never hear Joan speak but we see the actress that has been cast as playing her. Do you notice anything? Once again we see that Joan is cast as looking much older than she actually was but interestingly enough Joan is shown looking more masculine than what we have previously seen her as. For example, her hair is much shorter and the look of an innocent, naive girl is not visible. Instead, this portrayal of Joan seems more harsh and it makes her seem older than she should be.
Another theatre company produces a Joan of Arc show annually and while I could not find any videos of any of the productions, the description from the website seems as if Joan's story is one of elaboration and wonder. According to "Joan of Arc Play", "Joan of Arc is a legendary historical character enshrouded in mystery and wonder. The 2014 production is thrilled to be bringing pieces of her epic story to life in new and exciting ways through a fictional world newly crafted and designed" (1). I wonder about this "new and exciting ways through a fictional world." Is this maybe one reason why the history of Joan of Arc can have many variations in it? Meaning, is it because of the influence of pop culture that the history of Joan has become "tainted" to the point that people are often surprised when they learn the truth about her life and the influence she had? Has elaboration of Joan ruined the chances of accurately portraying her? Furthermore, do you think there can ever be an "accurate" portrayal of Joan in pop culture?
The following two images are scenes from the "Joan of Arc Play" production. What do you make of the way in which the actress playing Joan is dressed?
"National Theatre: Saint Joan." Uploaded July 3, 2007.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h9lVE7yTW8c.
"Joan of Arc Play."http://www.joanofarcplay.com.
Beth, you pose some interesting questions about pop culture and Joan. Specifically, about her clothing in the pictures, it does seem strange that the costumes are both very bright and yet somewhat homely-looking. Maybe the budget of the theater production has to be considered, but it still seems like the clothing is not very "Joan" or very battle ready. Secondly, it is difficult to say if Joan will ever be incredibly accurately portrayed in pop culture, seeing as how popular culture in some ways will always be using Joan to its own ends, but a heavy reliance on Joan's voice from the primary sources could help produce an "accurate" form of Joan even in pop culture.
ReplyDeleteSadie,
ReplyDeleteI agree that with more focus on the actual "Joan" and less on the elaborate Hollywood spectacle, creators could potentially form an "accurate" portrayal of Joan.
Even though the colors of the costumes were very bright, the production could have used the colors to grab the audiences attention. If the colors were more dull, the actors could have blended in with the surroundings and make for a dull-looking play. Making the costume for Joan more battle-ready would have been a good choice though.
ReplyDeleteI agree that Joan's costumes should stand out more. But we have to keep in mind that this production company may have a very limited budget so perhaps this is the best they could do. Which goes back to by original question of if a Joan of Arc theatre production is actually possible.
ReplyDeleteI feel like it isn't possible to understand Joan 100%. I feel that so far we have about an 80% understanding of who Joan was. This is a situation where I wish I could go back in time and record what I saw and come back to the present day! As for the play, I feel that It would be somewhat difficult to capture the essence of Joan based off of what we know. It seems a little bit ironic that Joan is the focus of a play when she did not really like being the center of attention when she was alive. I wonder what she would say about a play written about her!
ReplyDeleteChris,
ReplyDeleteI never really thought about the reference to Joan not wanting to be the center of attention and a theatre production- Great point! I now think that perhaps Joan would have frowned upon a play about her life where she was the center attention instead of the attention being focused on her mission from God.
I wonder if this is a production of George Bernard Shaw's 1924 play St. Joan? This play presents a kind of "Protestant" view of Joan, and includes a lengthy intro to Joan before the play--so it's sometimes used in English classes that explore Joan. It can be found here, if anyone wants to take a look: http://faculty.smu.edu/bwheeler/joan_of_arc/olr/07_saintjoan_gbshaw.pdf Published shortly after Joan's canonization, Shaw presents a more drab view of the church and the tragedy of what happened to Joan.
ReplyDeleteThat might be why things seem drab, or it might be how movies and films sometimes portray the "average joe" of the Middle Ages, which is how Shaw conceived of Joan. Anyone wanting to do more, could explore the play, or the movie version of the play, which starred 19 year old Jean Seeberg from Iowa (yes she was 19!!; in the back of the syllabus I have an interview with her which is very interesting).
What I have kind of noticed is people see Joan and idolize her for different reasons. People could idolize her for breaking gender barriers, her religious dedication, or for her French patriotism to name a few. Many of her details are up for debate and are up for discussion. I don't see a perfect portrayal, but I bet some can come close for many people's opinions.
ReplyDelete