REFLEXION #2

Acting, a dramatic art of character interpretation through role-playing, is the nexus of escapism. Every true actor does escape self to assume genuine role-playing, and to enjoin the audience into escapism. Sadly, acting has also become the means of exhibition for certain non-practitioners in public domain. They exploit the prestigious art in the reserve of performance communication for escapism when fixed in a critical situation. Remarkably, some Nigerian high profile public officers indulge in utilizing acting as ploy for escapism. In effect, they modify critical situations into dramatic happenings. Such high profile characters that have evinced the “escapist aesthetics” of acting include a serving Minister (2015), an incumbent Governor (2018), and a sitting Senator (2019)- all of whom made dramatic scenes that had enjoyed huge media reportage and considerable public traction. 

A new stock on the list has emerged during the probe of ill-managed funds from the coffers of a juicy government parastatal. The session had opened with the panel Chairman’s clarifying monologue-prologue; an exposition to back-story information. As of a simple plot drama that ran on climatic plot structure, the situation unfolded after the brief and discontinuous exposition. Then, the inciting moment set in when the Chairman stepped down for his Vice to take over the session. This in itself seemed to foreshadow a dismal ending. Fund disbursement, in multiple digits that should only be imagined, was the source of the conflicts that engendered rising action. Much as the Panelist kept to the principle of casualty, and dramatic actions ramped to climax too soon. The protagonist assumed an unexpected dimension for “escapist aesthetics”, like a reckless actor that refuted the director’s biding. He fainted conveniently in his sitting position, keeping his face to the desk and an eye wide-open to watch out for Curtain. Swiftly, stage hands hastened in and the happening ceased at climax, without falling action. 

Going by available reviews, the dramatic experience was distasteful. The Protagonist has been criticized for poor acting as his motivations appeared unfounded, and he was caught in and out of character. A side camera captured him as someone behind himself, while watching the role he was playing with unresolved concerns. Amidst the barrage of criticism flashed this relflexion that is grounded of plausibility. Suppose the protagonist was suffering from an underlying health condition, or he got struck by one during the overbearing critical happenings? This supposition seems conceivable in the face of an enduring global pandemic. Well, it’s a mere supposition. The immediate concern for many is for the protagonist to return, so that the show to go on. High profile public officers ought to engage in acting training, however brief, to save such ugly-natured situations. Acting is a prestigious profession, and every true actor can be self-sustained. The untutored/non-practitioner who exploits acting for escapism, in the manner that public officers do, will always crash from the high profile status.


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