Dismiss theater critics you disagree with, or learn from them?

Note to Chicago Tribune theater critic Chris Jones:

Hi, Chris.

I was surprised by all of the reviews highly recommending Mr. Wolf. 

[Deleted my thoughts about the play, which most readers of this blog probably haven’t seen.]

What I'm really writing about is that my reactions so often don't converge with the critics' that it makes me feel I'm not bright or perceptive, despite evidence to the contrary in other aspects of my life. Or maybe I'm not sophisticated enough for a cutting-edge theater like Steppenwolf. But isn't theater for ordinary folks, too?

Thanks for listening.

Marianne Goss

Jones replied reassuringly that he could see my position.

Fourteen of the 15 reviews on theaterinchicago.com gave Steppenwolf Theatre’s Mr. Wolf a “highly recommended.” I didn’t dislike the play but wasn’t wowed. How could the brilliance have escaped me? 

The theaters I attend the most are Steppenwolf and the Goodman because I usher at both. I avoid reading anything about a play beforehand, especially not reviews, so that I go with an open mind.

Reading reviews afterward, I look for points of agreement and insights. I don’t diverge from the critics all the time, but they often like a play more than I do, and then I wonder whether their superior knowledge of drama is why we differ. 

My note to Chris Jones suggested that ordinary patrons shouldn’t have to wonder what all the fuss was about. But I changed direction after reading a post by theater journalist Michael Portantiere on BroadwayStar’s website. 

“Don’t accept the anti-intellectual argument that critics are superfluous because ‘the public knows best,’” Portantiere wrote. ““There has always been and always will be great value in the opinions of people who have education, training, and/or experience in a certain field.”

Maybe what I don’t get presents an opportunity to learn. Reviewers may teach me things. 

Using a painting analogy, Portantiere said, “If you're unimpressed by a painting that's generally considered a masterpiece or, conversely, if you love a work that many critics view as negligible, I think it behooves you to at least try to understand why others strongly disagree with you. . . . I shudder to imagine what the Broadway landscape might have looked like over the decades if there had been no discerning critics around to help push people towards the good stuff and away from the schlock.” 

If you consistently disagree with particular reviewers, Portantiere said, you can avoid their reviews, “but it should be kept in mind that we often learn the most from people with whom we disagree.”

How does one find trustworthy critics in the internet age, when online review sites proliferate and their contributors may have no formal credentials? I skim the reviews that theaterinchicago.com aggregates from many sites. If a reviewer writes well — that I’m more qualified to judge — and does more than summarize the plot, I pay more attention.

I don’t want to turn theatergoing into an academic chore. I believe there is a place for pure entertainment or I wouldn’t read so many mystery novels or watch so many detective stories on TV. But Steppenwolf and the Goodman did not achieve their stellar reputations by believing it’s enough that audiences enjoy the show. If every play were comfortable and familiar, I expect I’d get bored and stop attending.