insert creative blog title here

So today, in the hopes of securing three free passes for my Theater Props class, I went to see the play Iphigenia 2.0, written by Charles Wee. The play is a fusion of the ancient Euripides play Iphigenia, and a modern reworking that puts the play in a suspension of time between the Trojan War and the War in Iraq. While its an interesting concept, what is perhaps the most radical part of the play is the fact that it is posted freely online, and is meant to be reworked, rewritten and reclaimed by other theater producers and directors. Wee calls it the (Re)making Project and as soon as a read it I instantly recognized a sort of creative commons usage agreement, though not stated as such. Secondly, I was intrigued as I continued to read about Wee. He is at least 70 years old, and yet he is not only a creative thinker to the point of being child-like, he is also very up-to-date on new technology and Web2.0. It got me thinking about children and education which we were discussing the other day. Its rather refreshing to find one still in a state of child-like curiosity about both technology and art and the combination thereof. The idea that plays are not merely for the individual author, but for all to be inspired from, should be an example for all education. Education should not be about rereading what has already been written, but about taking something that has been written and being inspired by it, reworking and reshaping it so that it speaks to you. As a lover of literature, I feel that as readers, when spend too much time making a work “speak” to us. Yes, Shakespeare was brilliant. I too enjoy works by Austen, Joyce, etc., ect., blah blah vomit. I get it. Other people write great things, but one can’t be educated by forced inspiration from great works. Great works should be a source of inspiration for new, individual works that speak to the writer and to a new audience. By allowing his plays to serve as inspiration, not merely works of art, Mee is taking a step towards changing the way we view art, and eventually, hopefully, education.