Theatre Studies Dwindling?

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 Lupita-Nyong’o actress. Broadway used to be the gateway to Hollywood.
The internet and cellphones are volcano ashes that have bruised the world, and what is taught in colleges and universities is one of the casualties.

Students used to study theatre because of Hollywood dreams and a promise of a good life, even a famous wife or husband thrown in. People in the business give the same vague answer, “I’ve always wanted to be an actor.”

Studying theatre in college was preparation for climbing the first step, which was a Broadway or West End play. There were always private prayers of being discovered by a film producer looking for fresh faces for his indie film.

Today’s reality in the year ‘22 is that the middle class that used to afford theatre tickets is no longer buying them. They are too busy, devising strategies of attracting more followers to their YouTube and Instagram accounts and the competition is very stiff. Girls that never studied Arts, let alone go to college drop their clothes at the drop of a hat. Who cares about Shakespeare and the play Hamilton?

Another example is the news from Broadway New York, that the Phantom of the Opera will take its last bow in 2023, after a long run: 35 years.

Mom, I want to study Theatre in college next year. That will be a hard sell because she will tell you to set up a YouTube account and produce your own films.

By:  Nonqaba waka Msimang.

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