¶ … Art in an Unpredictable World
The book And Then You Act: Making Art in an Unpredictable World, by Anne Bogart, is a collection of eight essays on art, theatre and the collaborative creative process that the artists who work in this medium apply to their craft. The book links each essay to the importance of action during times of difficulty, whether personal or political. Thus, the book's message is both educational and inspirational.
Bogart starts each chapter of this fantastic book with advice or insight towards a "bolder" form of art, which she illustrates with the metaphor "making music more intense." Through this metaphor, she provides the reader with a clear sense of what powerful art must mean. Bogart's bold art must thus consider the following themes: context, articulation, intention, attention, magnetism, attitude, content and time. She especially stresses the need for powerful art after the September 11 attacks, and the need for creativity that such dramatic events bring to a society that...
In other words, Bogart stresses that art can help our catharsis as a nation post the attacks.
In her first few chapters, Bogart establishes the book definitively, as more of a guide rather than a persuasive medium. Chapter 1, for example, relates her form of art to the audience, namely, what theatre means to say, and specifically what effective theatre must mean. She states that meaningful theatre not only has something to say, but also a technique with which it can say it effectively, and passion as a third component of the triad. She further describes that context gives art different meaning. To illustrate this important aspect, she gives an example of a production of "Hair" in war-torn Sarajevo, and demonstrates how this particular musical helped a city survive very hard times.
Bogart also links context with articulation, which she illustrates by stating, "one of the most radical things you can do in this culture of the inexact is to finish a…
