Boundries

The theatre of today's society is all about pushing boundaries. Whether those boundaries be about love, sex, marriage, religion, race or any other controversial topic, you can bet that there's at least two musicals that discuss, in a rather frank manner, at least one (if not many) of these topics. The question is: when/who decides if these musicals go too far? Today, our musicals, (The Book of Mormon, Jesus Christ Superstar, Avenue Q, etc.) are much more open and willing to portray rather sensitive and what we consider "taboo" information. But is this bad? To some, many of today's musicals might come off as extremely vulgar, rude, and rather offensive, but in my opinion: I don't mind any of it. The theatre is one of the only places in which such topics can be discussed and portrayed in such a 'free' manner. Yes, it might be offensive, and a bit uncomfortable at times, but that's the point. These topics intrigue audiences and (even though we try to deny it) entertain us. They're our... "guilty pleasures" I guess you could say. We, the younger generation, are not as offended by language, vivid imagery, or other aspects of today's theatre that our parents and the generations before them would shy away from. So, I say that there's still plenty of lines that are left to be crossed and that we should be mature enough to accept these subjects. They're apart of life, simple as that. If you don't want to be subject to them, then you don't have to go see the musical - it's your decision; no one will force you.