Experiencing "Light Shining in Buckinghamshire" at the National Theatre

Friday night, we had the pleasure of seeing "Light Shining in Buckinghamshire" at the famous Royal National Theatre in London. It was quite a treat getting to experience theatre in such a meaningful facility; it being a place and company officially established in 1963 after years of deliberation. It being a government institution, it's one of the best examples of a nation putting forth effort to fund and facilitate the art of theatre, with the intention of maintaining it as a viable art form despite the rise of other popular forms of entertainment such as film.

The theatre itself is absolutely massive; I was awe-struck at the size of it. Easily seating a few thousand people, it's grandness was a site to behold, and made me feel like I was about to experience something truly spectacular. The lights faded and the curtains rose to reveal one of the most spectacular sets I have ever seen; if I could've taken a photo of it, I would have. The set was revealed to be a massive table at which dozens of members of royalty sat and ate while the action took place on top of the table. As the play went on, what was at first a massive table gradually evolved into a setting for a courtroom, a ghetto, and a lawn of dirt.  It was, without a doubt, extremely impressive and a set that would permanently imprint itself into the memories of everyone in attendance. Unfortunately, the play itself wasn't quite up to par with the visuals. Many scenes were downright boring, and in turn made the stakes feel low and uninteresting. A play filled with as much politics as "Light Shining" does needs to have stronger, more interesting characters and stories within it, but it sadly had none of that. I was not alone, as I discovered once it was over that the majority of the people in my study abroad group didn't really enjoy or understand the play. It definitely felt like a play that British people would enjoy better, since it dealt a lot with British history and political strife that the British lower-class dealt with over the centuries. It was a great concept, but we all felt like it could have been executed a lot better. That said, it was still an amazing experience if only for the fact that the set itself was incredible and we got to see a play at a facility that has meant so much to the art of theatre.