Regular readers will know that this column is the space in Cherwell where one can find some of the dodgiest and (we like to think) most inventive satire in the paper. Our strategy is simple – we fabricate some sort of document whose patent absurdity, while fictional, is symptomatic of some element of stage life deserving humor.
It’s an easy and some might even say cowardly form of writing, for it risks no loss of its own and yet induces loss on another. In spite of how facile our position as satirists is, we do not have have any vitriol or ill intention towards our subjects.
But in the midst of cheap laughs, one thing we often neglect is the extraordinary effort and dedication that happens behind the curtain in the stage world. This Michaelmas has been an extraordinary term as regards the ambition and sheer bravery of many productions. The stress and pressure many endure from investing months of personal and creative energy into a project that represents an ideal worth fighting for, is truly admirable. This is to say nothing of the financial risks that this artistic bravery entails. As reviewers we have some small input in making people come and see shows. We have at points failed to bring out reviews on time and to attend every preview we have kindly been offered. For this we apologise and sincerely hope that whatever financial and or intellectual significance we possess has allowed everybody’s future endeavours to happen.
We do not conflate the aesthetic with our sense of ethic. But we hope our reviews have done at least some justice to the work that goes on behind the curtain. Neither do we believe our endorsement represents a vindication or culmination of these extraordinary efforts, but we hope we can at least indicate to our readership what amazing things happen in Oxford. Tellingly, it’s perhaps what happens under our noses everyday that is also one of the most incredible things one can see on any day. Here’s to Hilary 2016.
