to Zeek the Geek

With the emergence of early Greek and Roman drama came the development of satyr plays, which history has shown were bawdy in nature and contained dialogue and imagery that some people today might find offensive (in fact, an internet search of Greek and Roman pottery will find many adult-oriented pieces).  Throughout time, theatre artists have always “pushed the limits” of decency – a sense of decency that is subjective and can be interpreted differently by different people.

In today's world, film and television (even video games and music) have ratings systems, but live stage theatre still does not a formal ratings system.  This journal is to reflect on and respond to the following questions:

• if theatre was to institute a ratings system, informing audiences of theatrical works containing sexual situations, adult language and/or violence, would you consider it a hinderance to the growth of theatre?
• in your opinion, would a ratings system in theatre be considered censorship of the artist or merely a marketing strategy to increase sales (assisting the public in making a decision)?
• why or why not?
• include one example of a production, event, project or artist that would benefit and/or suffer

Create your response, in the Assignment submission box below (not in the Comments field), as a journal or diary entry.  This response will not be read by your fellow classmates.  The journal should be 1-2 pages long, approximately 400-500 words minimum.  Be careful of spelling, grammar, capitalization, and punctuation...proofread and edit your work as necessary.  If including a video or internet link, please cite your sources.  This assignment will be graded according to the Journal Rubric attached.