Hi everyone! Check out this short Ted-ed video about Dame Christie!
Here’s what’s fun about learning the basics of her novels and stories: she makes fun of some of these tropes in the play, Spider’s Web. So if you know the basics of Murder Mystery Setup, you will spot some of her making fun of herself a bit in the show.
One thing I am sure you will catch: the video references her stereotyping of certain groups of people. I think we probably all know at this point that this kind of thing was massively common when she was writing her books, in the early to mid 1900s. In the time since, there have been changes made to some of works in order to eliminate some of this stuff. In her plays, there is now a caveat in the beginning of the script that allows for a company to tweak language and phrasing to remove problematic words and racial stereotyping, which is a big deal, because there are many cases where you cannot do that without risking legal action! In our version of Spider’s Web, you will see a diversity of age, race, gender, body type, etc. throughout the actors – and therefore the characters. We can get into this more as we go along, and if you have questions, please ask! Theatre is about so much more than simply seeing a show and going home. It should spark conversation, lead to some questions, some answers, and hopefully entertain you while we’re at it!
I will be seeing a few of the cast members this week, but by then, you will be on Holiday Break! So I am going to leave you in suspense when it comes to the actors, but get any questions you have for them ready so we can dive right in when January comes.
Today’s question: what is your favorite mystery trope? For instance, the protagonist with amnesia, where the main character narrating the story just woke up and has no memory of who they are! Or the femme fatale! Or the old, “lights suddenly go out, and when they come back on, someone HAS BEEN MURDERED!” Do you have a mystery trope you love – or think is so ridiculous, but you kinda love it anyhow?
When it comes to mystery tropes, the protagonist with amnesia, “lights suddenly go out, and when they come back on, someone HAS BEEN MURDERED!”, secret passages, portraits with eye holes are some that our class said they enjoy most.