The 20th Of November: Theatre Analysis

From September 12th to October 4th, the Buddies in Bad Times Theatre are presenting the public with the mesmerizing play The 20th of November. The Toronto-based theatre gives thanks to BMO Financial Group, the lead corporate sponsor for the 2015-2016 year. The performance, running in just over an hour, grabs the audience along for a ride as it breaks down the troublesome thoughts bottled within the mind of school shooter Sebastian. Sebastian, played by Sina Gilani, shares the problems he has towards society, his troubling childhood memories, and the disgust towards people, especially those within his school. The outstanding production of The 20th of November successfully showcased the reality of the stigma of mental disorders through the character
It successfully convinced the audience of the seriousness of mental instability and the discrimination towards those with mental illness through a variety of ways. First, the performing area in itself was able to encapsulate this. It comprised of an open floor with chairs going around in a circle, forming an enclosed space (The 20th of November). Mimicking a therapy session, the performer was able to present himself to people that have come together to hear one another, in a manner as if the therapy session was on the topic of mental illness (The 20th of November). For instance, the directors’ choice of changing the voice showed the different voices running through the mind of the killer (The 20th of November). In several instances, Sebastian acted out as either a younger version of himself, his previous teachers, or the devil (The 20th of November). When the devil was triggered, Sebastian displayed an alter ego as his mood drastically changed to a more angered, demonic, version of himself (The 20th of November). This shows that he is clearly battling demons considering at the start of the play we observe the character and note he is very calm and such drastic alterations of mood can display signs of a mental disorder (The 20th of November). Therefore, formulating the area into looking like a therapy session showed the willingness of Sebastian to seek help and possessed the desire to be
A website that breaks down various symptoms of the disorder states that common effects include: agitation, irritability, worry, and quick ups and downs (PsychGuides). Irritability and agitation is shown repeatedly as the character reacted quickly to environmental sounds (Noren 3). For instance, someone in the audience dropping something, or a door closing (The 20th of November). This relates back to the reason for the stage to be formed into a therapy session. The character is displaying severe irritability and reacts to environmental sounds as it is meant to seem as if the audience was with the character in the very moment in a gathering. The performance was able to capture the good vs. evil aspect in life one with a mental instability. Switches between the angered tone in Sebastian’s voice towards society and people, and the switch to a sad tone when discussing the damage the character will do to his family, is just one example of mood change (The 20th of November). Another, more serious instance relating to the good vs. evil aspect would be when the character decides to tape his entire face (The 20th of November). Clearly the individual is confused but the taping of the face may have been overlooked by many and calls for a breakdown. The taping specifically covered parts of the nose and eyes but left the mouth