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Questions that are rarely asked
Why isn't there more science fiction theatre?
Posted by Tyler Cowen on April 14, 2008 at 05:34 PM in The Arts | Permalink
Comments
The use of special effects to present other-worldly locations and fantastic situations that cannot be achieved in reality is such a staple of science fiction, and largely unavailable in a theatre format.
Posted by: Jolly Bloger at Apr 14, 2008 6:01:04 PM
Three words: special effects budgets. (But three letters as counterexample: R.U.R.)
Posted by: johnshade at Apr 14, 2008 6:01:31 PM
Does the One Man Star Wars count as Sci Fi theatre? LOL
Posted by: Chewxy at Apr 14, 2008 6:03:23 PM
Because theatre is for grown-ups?
Posted by: dearieme at Apr 14, 2008 6:09:39 PM
1) Cost of props.
2) There's more money in TV.
3) Science fiction spends a lot of time describing either new technologies or unfamiliar social systems, neither of which make for good theatre.
Posted by: Anthony at Apr 14, 2008 6:09:41 PM
When you think about it, aren't Wagner's Ring operas basically science fiction?
Posted by: The Owner's Manual at Apr 14, 2008 6:13:59 PM
The answer is probably much more complex than 'lack of special effects.' Theater generally aims to create a story with minimal scenery and effects work, and no one believes Juliet is really dead when she stabs herself. Many people are also willing to see sci-fi movies with poor-to-moderate special effects.
In fact, is there any other group of readers more willing to suspend belief?
I suspect the reasons are much more complex and tied more closely to the demographics of theater patronage. Theater is more of a niche entertainment, more so than science fiction movies, and I expect the number of sci-fi loving theater-goers is smaller still.
Budgetary reasons may play some part, for while they can control spending they cannot control ticket sales. It is more likely that no small, tight-budget theater (isn't that true of all theaters?) is willing to take a risk on a type of theater that has no strong precedent. Too strange compared to Wilder or Miller, but too conventional regarding plot and characters to be considered truly 'experimental' or modern.
Posted by: Amanda at Apr 14, 2008 6:48:31 PM
Science fiction is characterised by high sunk costs incurred by the author during creation and the audience during exposition. I suspect the greater suspension of belief due to audience self-selection means the storylines can be sustained for a longer period thereafter. As such, we should expect to see science fiction take the forms of (relatively long) series of books and television shows rather than unitary works like theatre or opera.
Posted by: Millian at Apr 14, 2008 6:59:13 PM
The author forgets that there was actually a "Doctor Who" stage production as recently as the 1990s, not the '60s.
Posted by: Franklin Harris at Apr 14, 2008 7:12:54 PM
I'll see your R.U.R. and raise you a "Rocky Horror Show".
Posted by: doctorpat at Apr 14, 2008 10:25:10 PM
Not to mention "Stop The Planet Of The Apes, I Want To Get Off!"
Posted by: Jim at Apr 15, 2008 4:19:37 AM
Special effects shouldn't have to be an obstacle to presenting certain kinds of sci-fi ideas. "Brother from Another Planet", (1984) is John Sayles' sci-fi movie done with only audio effects, nothing visible (except the toenails, of course).
Posted by: polly at Apr 15, 2008 6:40:01 AM
Does the Warp trilogy count?
Sci fi doesn't have to be about special effects. It can be about ideas. Horror works well on stage. I can easily see a play version of "I Am Legend."
Posted by: Ted Craig at Apr 15, 2008 8:56:44 AM
Hmmm... I can easily think of three science fiction musicals from the last twenty-five years -- Time, Little Shop of Horrors, and Urinetown. (Should Jekyll and Hyde count? It's basically 19th century science fiction.) And there are plenty of fantasy shows loaded with special effects -- Disney's done a slew of them, but also Phantom of the Opera and the Lord of the Rings.
I'm inclined to think it's mostly just a matter of habit. There just aren't that many new shows produced in a year, and there's a strong tendency to stick to what has worked in the past. So you get lots of 19th century novels adapted, and endless thinly veiled remakes of Madame Butterfly and La Boheme.
Though it's possible that the real story is Time was so monumentally bad it poisoned the field for a few decades...
Posted by: Sol at Apr 15, 2008 9:15:17 AM
How about science fiction opera? Leoš Janáček wrote The Makropulos Affair in 1926 based on a Čapek play of a few years earlier. The story is about the consequences of life extension, about as science-fictional an idea as there is. There was a staging at NY Lincoln Center a few years back, too.
Philip Glass as written SF operas as well.
Posted by: RichM at Apr 15, 2008 9:20:47 AM
Dare I give the stock economics answer?
Because there is a low correlation between people who like both sci-fi and theater resulting in lack of demand for the product?
Or is the question assuming the low correlation and demand implicitly, looking for some deep insight into the human psyche in order to answer a trivial question?
Somebody needed something to write about...
Posted by: infopractical at Apr 15, 2008 11:17:05 AM
I disagree with the premise, my favorite theater has plenty of aliens, zombies, and even L. Ron Hubbard.
http://www.dadsgarage.com/shows/plays.php
This may be the first time I've ever thought Tyler needed to broaden his cultural horizons. sci fi and sci fi elements are pretty common when your theater is cheap and run by people under 40.
Posted by: DK at Apr 15, 2008 2:51:37 PM
The cost of special effects, vs the perception that you're aiming at a small, specialized audience of nerds. Note how many plays these days are being given on some variation of the bare stage or the generic-industrial set.
I did see a stage production of 1984 which got around all that by setting it in an Abu Ghraib-like prison in which Winston, under torture, is telling his story and some of the interrogators in their business suits act out the various parts - which throws a very clear light on the personalities involved. The "along comes a chopper to chop off your head" was done with sound footage from the very familiar sound of military helicopters.
Posted by: Pat Mathews at Apr 15, 2008 3:38:54 PM
Taking a stab:
Maybe art forms don't gain status until a given lag (eg Shakespeare, kabuki), and Scifi's too new. Meanwhile, theater aims for "high" art, so it ignores reality TV, rap battles, and scifi, in favor of seasoned art forms such as farce.
Posted by: Peter St. Onge at Apr 16, 2008 7:57:06 PM
