Theatre has been around for centuries; from the beginning of theatre through oral tradition, to ancient Greek theatre to the contemporary theatre that we know today. Theatre is an intricate part of human history. Theatre is important because it has the ability to show the best and the worst sides of human nature. It has the ability to purge our emotions, making it an experience that cleanses the human soul. Even before humans had the ability to read and write, stories were passed down through oral storytelling and giving a visual imagery to people and bringing memories to a persons mind. Today, in modern society, theatre has been embellished and more than ever, people are going to the theatre to watch stories come alive on stage and learn new life long lessons about love, friendship, betrayal, trust and forgiveness.
Theatre mirrors the past, present and future of our society. People connect with history through the stage and can create a more effective emotional connection to our roots. Theatre is important to me because it gives me the opportunity, as the actor, to step into another person’s life and feel their emotions and go through their journeys as a human being. Theatre, in my life, is giving a gift to the performers, to the audience members, and anyone else who is a part of the project. It is important to every person in all walks of life because we learn of each other, ourselves, trials and tribulations, and to perhaps, find a way to resolve our conflicts between ourselves and other people. We learn more about ourselves and the people around, and perhaps, theatre will give us a venue and medium in which we can come to mutual understandings, or create havoc and chaos from all the different people in the room. But that is up to us to decide.
