Donald V. Calamia (![[info]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} critic_don) wrote,@ 2008-04-19 16:18:00 |
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As I mentioned in my previous entry, it's never easy deciding what to trim when a review runs a little longer than it should. So what you're about to read is a secret tour through a critic's mind when he's faced with having to make a tough call:
The first draft of my recent review of Improv at the Point at Northville's Tipping Point Theatre came in at around 575 words, which was 75 words longer than the space allowed. (Although that might not SOUND like a lot of extra words, it actually amounts to about 10 lines of copy in the newspaper.) So I immediately went about trimming out any colorful verbiage and witticisms that didn't particular add anything insightful to the review. But it was still running long.
That's when the tough call had to be made.
Now, I'll be honest: I generally don't struggle more than a few seconds over what to cut from any story I write. (I'd end up with an ulcer if I did! Plus, I'm not THAT much in love with my work that I can't decide what needs to be axed when the situation demands it.)
THIS particular review WAS different, however. I did INDEED struggle with what to remove from the review, and my ultimate decision earned a passionate letter from one of the nicest guys in Metro Detroit's theater community (who also happens to be in the show). Here's part of what Dave Davies wrote:
One thing I would also like to mention and I certainly hope I'm not out of line in doing so. It's always such a pleasure to work with Geff Phillips who has been accompanying us since the beginning. I feel Geff always goes up and beyond what most musicians CAN do. Geff himself is an amazing musical improviser which is an extremely rare find! I thought it was brilliant how he handled 'hip-hop' by beating the travel trunk near the back of the stage. Completely improvised and nicely executed!
Geff is an extremely humble guy and I doubt he would even bring it up to anyone. I just feel he is a strong part of our cast and often the trick to making things work. Especially when it comes to making up a musical.
Again, I hope I'm not out of line in saying these things.
Nope: Dave wasn't out of line at all. In fact, his letter struck a chord, since my original review did indeed contain a two-sentence acknowledgement of Geff's fine contributions to the show - and those were the last words that I regretfully removed from it.
So why did I delete all references to Geff rather than something else?
Since it's far more likely that my readers would be familiar with the improvisers in the show (since fans often DO follow them from venue to venue) than with its accompanist, Geff got deleted. (There was little else to cut to get down to the 500-word limit.)
That's it. That's the entire explanation. And it was an action I wish I didn't HAVE to take, since Geff's contributions ARE importent to the show's success.
So I guess the moral of the story is this: Just because we critics fail to acknowledge someone in our reviews doesn't mean their performance wasn't noteworthy enough to EARN that acknowledgement. Sometimes its simply because we've run out of space to do so!
