Think Tank Thursday: Reality's Fine Line

How do you determine what is real and what is not?

When you first look at this question you may think it is absurdly simple. Really think, however, about how you decide what is real. Hallucinations can involve the sensations of touch, taste, sound and sight, so those are not as reliable as we would like to believe.

In the end what is real is determined because we eventually say it is so. In order to not go crazy or waste resources, our minds categorize things we see often and trust that similar things will also be real.

Everything we experience is processed in the mind, real or imaginary. The fine line lies in our categorization of the information.

Theatrically we  use this to our advantage, often without knowing it. We are told as actors to root our experiences in a basis of reality. This allows the audience to automatically assume that the performance is realistic. Because the audience knows they are at a performance, and in our current culture all performances of plays are high level pretending, they will have a basic line between reap and fake from the start. Once you root them to your performance with realistic elements, you entrap them and allow for more fantastic elements to be slipped in with less resistance.

Although we base our reality on what we have seen or experienced before, in order to progress our knowledge our minds have to remain open to the idea that new experiences can be just as real as old. Basically, the audience is ready to believe what ever you tell them. Getting their trust in the very beginning is crucial, it will allow for more of the play to be accepted. If you don't get the audience hooked in the beginning it isn't the end, they are watching for enjoyment, they will check in again and again to try and gain a foothold. The audience can't enjoy what it doesn't understand and the mind can't stand uncertainty, it causes anxiety and frustration (plus no one likes to think they wasted money).

Suspension of disbelief is vital and the audience is ready to give it, they just need to trust where they will be taken when they do.

Greg Poljacik