The power theme was represented by two children: one was a teenage girl and the other a little boy. The girl approached the little boy and took his jacket. At this point another boy appeared who was yet again bigger than the small boy and took his hat. The audience could feel that the small boy helpless against all those big people; and the theme of power was visible. It was clear that you needed a lot of power to stand on your own two feet in that society. Those children represented the reality of life; the world the Birlings thought didn’t exist. The harshness of life was also apparent because the little boy seemed to be an orphan and there seemed to be no one around to protect him. The diversionary tactics were used to their full effect because they caused a reaction from the audience: we could see the children at the front of the stage, we could picture the old woman (Edna) bustling about and we could hear the voices from inside the house, and to react to all three of the imageries presented before us was quite intriguing.
However, whilst all this was happening, the house in the middle of the stage seemed totally unperturbed by all that was going on outside. It was obvious that they were having a celebration of some kind and they kept themselves to themselves. They seemed totally unaware of the life outside their comfort zone (their house). As the Birlings stepped out of their house, we could see that they had difficulty moving in and out through the little house door. The little door represented the fact that the Birlings had difficulty moving between the two worlds: their world and the real world. Even as they passed the threshold of their comfort zone boundaries, they did not seem to notice people all around them; they gave the impression that only they themselves and Gerald were alive. They stepped outside on the balcony and gave speeches boasting about themselves and showed no regard for the children or Edna. They seemed deaf to the sirens of the outside world, even though they live in it.
During the midst of all that was going on in the centre of the stage, we saw a man walking up the aisle towards the stage. This was a good use of the audience because it sent a ripple of excitement through everyone. As this weird character walked up to the stage, the music suddenly changed from the siren and became harsher. It became more powerful, which was a good literary device because it described the cartoon-like creature that had just arrived, indirectly. Even though there was no spotlight on the new arrival, the sidelight which was used to great effect, gave out a dim shadow, which made the Inspector look bigger than the Birlings house. This melodramatic device made it look like that the Inspector was over-shadowing the Birlings house and made him look more powerful. The character appeared wearing a modern day three piece suit and a peculiar hat, a brown coat and a small brief case like bag. With his clothes, he did not seem to belong to our era either. He seemed to present a ghost like aura around him and looked like a time traveller, moving between the worlds of the Birlings and the real one. We perceived right away that this was the Inspector that was going to inspect the Birlings and Gerald.
As this powerful figure stood there, the little boy went over to him. The Inspector produced an orange, which was significant because it was not something that would have been available in Britain at that time, this suggested that the Inspector might be foreign and was a good use of props. The little boy seemed to trust the Inspector straightaway as he was ready to accept an object from him that he might never have seen before, whereas he was shunning away from the house of the Birlings. Inside the house there seemed to be no sign of the fact that one of the Birlings or Gerald had realised that there was a stranger in their midst who was going to open up their house literally and metaphorically.
As the maid announced that an Inspector had called, the music yet again changed and became more melodramatic. This was very influential because we could feel the sudden change of atmosphere. We knew that the play was about to change very dramatically. So the inspection began….
We could perceive that something special was going to happen as the Inspector started to inspect the Birlings, and we were not disappointed. Finally, the Birlings house opened up and we could see all the characters inside it. This theoretical device was very clever, because the audience were keen to see inside the house, they now knew that they will get the inside information of the plot regarding this family and Gerald. All the characters inside the house were portrayed in an appealing manner; all of them were around a small table in a small room, which seemed to provide neither comfort nor peace. The actors and actresses all appeared in the way that the audience thought that they would, all of them wearing interesting and elegant costumes which clashed horribly against the low, dim and dirty area surrounding their house. They all appeared to be out of place and looked around uncomfortably at their surroundings. It seemed by the expressions on their faces that this was the first time that they realised that there was something in this world other than just their house. This house represented the Birlings and Gerald because it opened up and then crashed down, just like the Birlings did as the play progressed.
As each character got inspected by the Inspector, the limelight shone on them. This was an interesting use of the lights because in reality that person would have been under the spotlight when they got questioned by the Inspector. We noticed how the characters changed as the play progressed, Sheila’s and Mrs. Birlings’ dresses became dirty as they took steps outside the house. As Mrs. Birling stepped outside of the house, Edna placed a rug out for her, because the road, perhaps, was too dirty for her to walk on. Mr. Birling’s voice started to get louder and we could tell that he was intimidated by the Inspector, because he kept mentioning his connections with the police force, as if he was trying to scare the Inspector away, Gerald became less sleek and Eric became more sober and like an adult rather than a drunken teenager that he first appeared to be. The audience were used to enhance this production and was used by the Inspector quite a lot. We, the audience, felt as if we were part of the drama, and our reactions to the characters fit in with the play as if they were meant to be there.
This production of the play was very attention-grabbing and full of exciting melodrama. The opening scenes were very significant because they set up the base for the whole play. I felt that the lighting was used to great effect; the music always met the reaction that it was meant for; the characters were superb in their acting, from the start to the end; the stage was useful for each character in their own special way; the props were all valuable, but the best of all was the audience and atmosphere of watching the play in a theatre.
