What's With The Theatrics?

As Wayne and Garth had once said, we will not bow to any sponsors! We will not sell ourselves out! And we will not do things only because we get paid! We are the new generation!

Of course, while all this is being said, Wayne and Garth bowed to sponsors, sold themselves out, and purposefully displayed product placement because they were getting paid. Welcome ladies and gentlemen to the new generation!   

Product placement or embedded advertisments are prominent in today's society. Just ask Michael Bay who has made a pretty penny or more exploiting the concept. Television shows support the idea, just check out any spotlight of American Idol. Movies are famous for it. Ever seen The Island? Try and count how many products are conveniently shoved at viewers, I bet you'll lose count.

But the thing is, we have grown so accustomed to having ads pollute our screens that we're able to ignore them. But what happens when we encounter them, or a strange theatrical variation of it, in an unexpected way?

Meet the comical genius, Richard Linley. A local theatre in Selby is currently running a production called Aladdin, Or The Wonderful Lamp. It's written and directed by the master of comedy himself (and no that is not a biased opinion).

What was interesting for me when I first saw the production, was their use of advertising embedded in the script. Dialogue such as, "He was the sweetest thing this side of Len's Bakery..." and "He was hot! Hot like the furnaces sold at McKeown and Wood..."

If you fail to recognize those companies or brands, that's because they are all local to Selby and are sponsors for the theatre. That's right! Local sponsors were mentioned in the play itself! Best part is, Richard made it funny! The crowd was falling out of their seats laughing at a man dressed as a woman talk about how sweet and hot his...or her...late husband was. Clever writing can make even the most absurd and blatant advertising work.

When advertising first trickled into our entertainment on television, many were sceptical and some were even outraged! I'd hate to see their reactions to a play like Richard's. Then again, maybe his clever writing will actually show people that ads can be stitched in to our entertainment, and be entertaining themselves.