"The day is drawing to a close..."
"As he does every day..."
"She has gone. Her steps are many, filling other places..."
"You have gone, this place is gradually becoming empty, your position is relinquished to nothingness..."
"She's not here..."
Sorry, it's not that Anson doesn't speak human language, it's that James and Seth don't speak human language at all. Their profound and difficult-to-understand dialogue is mixed with inexplicable Latin and French, to the point that Anson couldn't help but start to question his existence.
Does this mean that the language pack will need to be patched after we travel through time?
The problem is that Anson can understand each word individually, but when put together, they are confusing and leave the audience completely bewildered, with no idea what the actors are performing. Moreover, there is no build-up or explanation; the performance comes crashing down right from the start, leaving the audience disoriented.
On stage, two actors stand in the left corner, both facing the same direction, exchanging pleasantries with a cool and aloof demeanor. Before one can finish speaking, the other interrupts, and before the latter can finish speaking, the former interrupts again, as if performing a ball-throwing and catching acrobatic act.
Then.
James moved silently from behind the stage like a ghost, expressionless and with vacant eyes, completely absorbed in the world of "A Chinese Ghost Story," seemingly on a completely different wavelength from the others.
this...
Anson glanced down at the play brochure—
"Hole".
There's also some small print in the bottom left corner, which you'd almost miss if you weren't looking closely:
Two hours and thirty minutes without intermission.
Anson thought it was because his artistic appreciation was insufficient and he had failed to understand James and Seth's creative intentions. What happened to the toilet humor?
But when I turned my head, I saw...
Chris was already nodding off, glistening drool sliding down his lips.
Judd pulled out two hamburgers and wolfed them down, afraid of being discovered. After taking a bite, he hid the hamburgers in the shadows of the seat in front of him and chewed them slowly with his mouth closed.
A producer was playing Snake on his phone between his knees, propping his chin up with one hand and pretending to be engrossed in the performance, but his eyes were completely on the phone.
A reporter was studying the water stain pattern on the seat as if it were a masterpiece left by Michelangelo.
As for the agent?
My fingers flew across the phone's keyboard, busy even in the theater, constantly processing text messages and emails. Whether it was work related to tonight's play or other actors' work was unknown, but my thumbs were always busy.
Is this really a good idea?
What Anson didn't know was that performance art is also art, and it doesn't matter if you don't understand it.
In Hollywood, not all casting directors trust casting companies. They often rely more on their own intuition and inspiration, so they continuously watch movies, television shows, and plays, searching with their own eyes. Although it may seem a bit clumsy, they are always able to uncover true gems.
This is also true for some directors, such as Quentin Tarantino, the Coen brothers (Joel-Coen and Ethan-Coen), Noah Baumbach, and others, as well as some big-name producers.
They frequently appear in cinemas, theaters, opera houses, and other venues, and are not limited to any particular art form. Whether it's a box office hit or a niche experimental play, they are willing to offer their support through practical actions, showing a deep love for their work and enjoying it.
At the same time, we hope to find gemstones.
It is precisely for this reason that James and Seth's experimental drama received support from their agent.
Who knows?
Perhaps a producer or casting director saw the potential in this play and gave them a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
Or perhaps it's about using this play to cultivate an image and reputation that values art, spreading it throughout Hollywood and creating a good impression on producers?
Snoring.
Chris leaned back, snoring softly, his mouth wide open. Without warning, a muffled thud came from the direction of the stage, instantly waking him up. Chris quickly wiped his mouth, sat up straight, and hurriedly opened his eyes to look at the stage, his sleepy eyes completely disoriented.
Not to mention Chris, even Anson, who watched the whole thing, didn't understand what was going on.
Seth, holding a guitar, sat in front of the stage and began to play and sing like Cupid in a frenzy, as spotlights shone down on him.
This seems to be a very important play, but no one knows why it is important, what makes it important, or why it is presented in this way. No one dares to ask.
but!
As the lights dimmed at the end of the performance, a thunderous applause erupted.
*Clap, clap clap clap*
This is a signal.
One second they're busy with their own things, sending text messages, reading newspapers, secretly eating potato chips, or propping their heads up to sleep.
The next second, they all snapped out of their daze, stood up with lightning speed, looked at the stage with flushed faces, and gave each other a warm round of applause.
In twos and threes, one after another.
Then, the entire audience in the theater stood up and applauded.
His appearance and posture were as if he had just appreciated a masterpiece.
Of course, Chris and Anson were no exception.
This was Anson's first time on such a occasion, but he only hesitated for a moment before calmly standing up, clapping and enjoying the moment.
Looking at those faces wearing masks and giving their all, I was moved to tears and full of praise. The acting skills of each one of them were in no way inferior to those of the actors on stage.
This scene is far more exciting than tonight's drama.
Chris's drowsiness finally vanished. Noticing Anson's gaze, he looked around and couldn't help but recall the conversation before they set off. He turned to look at Anson, and the two exchanged a knowing glance. Chris almost burst out laughing on the spot.
With all his might, Chris barely managed to control himself.
However, the next second...
A figure stood directly in front of them, raising both hands high, clapping vigorously, and shouting, "Masterpiece! Masterpiece!"
He choked up as he shouted, hurriedly wiping away tears from the corners of his eyes with his right hand, and then immediately continued clapping.
The scene, so close yet so real, unfolds with genuine emotion.
puff.
Chris was just a hair's breadth away from losing control, and he quickly lowered his head, but his shoulders still started to shrug uncontrollably.
Anson was no exception, but he controlled himself and watched the spectacle with the detached enjoyment of a pantomime.
In my past life, I've seen too many scenes of fangirls shedding tears over the expressionless acting of popular young actors; the scene before me is nothing more than child's play.
Indeed, the entertainment industry is a circle; even across the Pacific Ocean, the entertainment industries on both continents are essentially the same.
Just then, Anson noticed a figure diagonally in front of him out of the corner of his eye—
He looked around with a bewildered and disbelieving expression, his eyes filled with shock; the emotion in his eyes was palpable even without words.
Am I watching a different play than everyone else? Am I crazy, or is the whole theater crazy? What's going on here?
His expression was as captivating as Truman's when he finally realized he was living in a fake world where everyone was acting.
It turns out there were still normal people at the Hayworth Theater this afternoon.