To try and explain the notion of sports-entertainment to critics is not easy. It can be said that there is nothing like it in American culture that has had such an impact across the world. People watch it for different reasons, some enjoy the athleticism, some enjoy the humour and some simply enjoy being an active participant in a fun and exciting community.
The wins maybe predetermined, the moves are choreographed, but the result of the violence is very real. It could be argued that the wrestlers are just acting and they really do not get hurt, but one has to ask him/herself to what extent is this true. Even though the wrestlers have been taught how to break-fall to minimize the impact when they are slammed on the canvas mat, encountering bumps, bruises or even injury is still inevitable. I sometimes ask myself, why I enjoy it so much when I now it is all rehearsed and everything that I am seeing before me is pre-determined just like a stage show. I would have to say that I just love the pageantry, athleticism, even the poor acting.
Everything that WWF does resembles a theatre in my eyes. Vince McMahon employs scriptwriters, in house composers, and even wardrobe designers. There are also set designers and sound and lighting technicians who contribute to the show. I feel the critics have got it all wrong; the WWF is not about fighting, it is all about spectacle. The one factor that is missing from this ‘theatre’ is the actors that are instead replaced with wrestlers, who are showmen and artists in their own right. The storylines of this ‘theatre’ are ongoing with it’s the development of the larger–than-life heroes and anti-heroes. Unlike the everyday theatre the audience are expected to be passive and stay quiet during the performance, the WWF however feeds and thrives on the active participation of its audiences. It can be compared to the ritualistic Balinese theatre where the audience get full enjoyment out of the theatre experience through active participation.
Most people see wrestlers to be ‘muscle bound beefcakes’ who have no sense of articulation. To be in professional wrestling today you have got to be intelligent as well as being strong and healthy. The wrestler Mick Foley best know to his fans as ‘Mankind’, ‘Dude Love’ and Cactus Jack, can be described as one of the most insane characters in wrestling but as a person he is very astute and intellectual man who wrote the #1 New York Times Bestseller, ‘Have a nice Day! A tale of Blood and Sweat socks.’ The wrestler (or performer) has to have the ability to reach out and touch the audience and get emotions running through the body to either cheer them or despise them. This is similar to the actor on stage, the hero wants the audience to like him and villain loves to be hated. Even though the villain is not popular with the audience it shows that the performer has been successful by doing what the director or playwright wanted.
Professional wrestling today is not about winning or losing, is about entertaining the audience through what can be seen as ‘physical theatre’. I would describe it to be a soap opera that takes place in a wrestling ring (the stage) with its audience ‘in the round’. The WWF may have the most outrageous storylines that some people may find offensive and unbelievable, but it is all due to individual taste and preference.
Many theatre critics would probably disagree with me to say professional wrestling is a new form of theatre but one believes it has all the basic elements and also a similar goal -to entertain.