Theatrical Politics

The other night I attended a theatrical reading of great speeches. It was presented by a local chapter of the Populist Party and leaned somewhat towards their views.

Onstage, an actor read the speeches of Caesar, Charlemagne, Washington, and William Jennings Bryan. He was loud and dramatic and I thoroughly enjoyed myself. A gentlemen sitting near me did not feel the same way and was quite vocal in his criticism.

"This is just politics disguised as theater!" he cried. "How can anyone abide such simplistic, good-for-nothing rhetoric?"

"In the first place sir," I replied. "Politics IS theater. It may be enjoyed from a good seat that is out of spitting range from the actors, and one may boo or hiss if one is so inclined. In the second place, this performance is useful to me. I always wondered how other married men justified coming home late."

Copyright © 2012 Laurie J. Anderson. All rights reserved.