refusing to cuss in a show- Page 3

[Reginald Tresilian]

Posted: 8/12/09 at 12:03pm

It wasn't in Blair's story about "Oklahoma."

But okay, so we're just talking about the word "f*ck"? If that's the case, then I'd say just perform the thousands and thousands of plays that don't have the word in it.

[Phyllis Rogers Stone]

Posted: 8/12/09 at 12:05pm

Sorry, darned and damned do not mean the same thing.

[husk_charmer]

Posted: 8/12/09 at 12:08pm

^Yea, I'm mainly referring to f*ck and goddamn (because most schools, at least in the South, don't allow that one).

And in a lot of cases there may be one use of goddamn, and it can be shortened to damn with no real meaning lost.

I think the big thing is, people forget that curse words very rarely add meaning, only emphasis. There are plenty of ways to get a point across without using them, and if a school wants to do something like "All My Sons" or "Oklahoma!" and has to cut them, I say fine.

And, for the record, "durned" is probably much more period reflexive than "damned"

[Phyllis Rogers Stone]

Posted: 8/12/09 at 12:10pm

Unless you are actually talking about god damming someone, which is generally what it means in Shakespeare.

[husk_charmer]

Posted: 8/12/09 at 12:11pm

PRS-
From dictionary.com:
darned
??/d?rnd/ Show Spelled Pronunciation [dahrnd] Show IPA Informal.
Use darned in a Sentence
?adjective
1. irritating; damned; confounded: Get that darned bicycle out of the driveway!

?adverb
2. very; extremely; remarkably: She's a darned good tennis player.

Origin:
1800?10; euphemism for damned, perh. by construing dern dark, dreary (now obs.) as an intensifier in phrases such as dern and dreary, dern and doleful

That's the first definition for it, too.

http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/darned

and re: Goddamn,

From what I remember (Granted I don't have the texts in front of me) it's phrased more as the God, damn..., whereas goddam is what is generally frowned upon. Granted, I don't remember the expression showing up in Shakespeare at all, so I could be off my mark here.

Updated On: 8/12/09 at 12:11 PM

[tazber]

Posted: 8/12/09 at 12:14pm

I got a laugh out of the warning on the top of this page.

Updated On: 8/12/09 at 12:14 PM

[Phyllis Rogers Stone]

Posted: 8/12/09 at 12:14pm

Hmmm. Like the DICTIONARY is what I'd trust. Kidding.

I get that, but then it makes me wonder - if all these euphemisms are just that - isn't it still blasphemy to say gosh darn it if it means the same thing as god damn it? What about Jeez?

[tazber]

Posted: 8/12/09 at 12:16pm

See my link Phyl.

The song doesn't use any curse words, but it's still "offensive" to some people with all the substitutions.

Words to avoid:

dad gum
rakafratchits

Updated On: 8/12/09 at 12:16 PM

[madbrian]

Posted: 8/12/09 at 12:18pm

If I were director, and one of my cast members protested using curse words in the script, I'd tell them to go f*ck themselves.

[Reginald Tresilian]

Posted: 8/12/09 at 12:19pm

Well, exactly, Phyl.

As George Carlin said, there are no bad words. There are bad thoughts, bad intentions, but no bad words.

So, sorry, kids: If you say "dad gummit" instead of "goddammit," you're still going to hell (if that's what you believed in the first place).

[husk_charmer]

Posted: 8/12/09 at 12:19pm

I think it's the implied meaning that bothers people. And, from what I've gathered, it's largely at places in the south.

I know at my old college we were allowed to use any language we wanted, however the Catholic and Baptist organizations used to pitch a fit over goddam, so we typically swapped it out for f*ck. And even then, in the 3 years I was there it happened once (and naturally it was my line that got the alteration.)

[Elphie3]

Posted: 8/12/09 at 12:23pm

I agree - if there's a good reason for the character to say it, I say it. I do have a problem however when the cussing is in there for no reason - and yes, I have trouble taking God's name in vain, ESPECIALLY when it's oubvious the writer only put it in there for shock value, or 'cause they couldn't think of anything else. Then I might say something. But if it "defines the character" as you say, then I'm all for it - actors have to show the gritty, hard sides of life just as much as the light, and in real life, people cuss.

[tazber]

Posted: 8/12/09 at 12:24pm

What exactly is a rakafratchit anyway?

[Fosse76]

Posted: 8/12/09 at 12:30pm

"I agree - if there's a good reason for the character to say it, I say it. I do have a problem however when the cussing is in there for no reason - and yes, I have trouble taking God's name in vain, ESPECIALLY when it's oubvious the writer only put it in there for shock value, or 'cause they couldn't think of anything else. Then I might say something. But if it "defines the character" as you say, then I'm all for it - actors have to show the gritty, hard sides of life just as much as the light, and in real life, people cuss."

It doesn't matter WHY it is in the script. The author wrote it. It's the actor's job to say it. If he doesn't want to, there are hundreds/thousands of other actors who will. The actor doesn't get to decide what is important in a script.

[D2]

Posted: 8/12/09 at 12:30pm

Oh Taz, don't you remember that night in Tink's dungeon a couple of years ago?








THAT'S what it means.

[tazber]

Posted: 8/12/09 at 12:32pm

Oh,......OH!

So that's what that's called. Damn (I mean durn), I still have a scar from that thing.

[madbrian]

Posted: 8/12/09 at 12:34pm

"ESPECIALLY when it's oubvious the writer only put it in there for shock value, or 'cause they couldn't think of anything else."

I would totally discount "they couldn't think of anything else". I mean, we're talking about a playwright, correct? I'm sure they know a lot of words. So, that leaves shock value. If so, you're saying that the playwright deliberately wrote shocking language, and you're going to replace it with something that doesn't shock?

[broadwayguy2]

Posted: 8/12/09 at 12:34pm

You know, quite often, you can easily find the script of a show, if it is an existing show, BEFORE you even walk in the door to audition. Therefor, why would you walk in to auition KNOWING that you object to the content of the show and what you would have to do and then, if you get the gig, whine, gripe and complain? To me, it unprofessional and extremely childish. You have the opportunity to find out beforehand, so if you object, don.t even go in for it.

As was said before, there are no such things as 'bad words', people just choce which ones to demomize, because they always have to demonize something.

As far as the "G-D it" arguement. --

I see NO problem with damning an idiotic, nonsensical fictional character thought up and believed in by weak minded people that amounts to no more than excuse and a line like "because I said so" used by a parent on a three old and a justification to think yourself 'better' than someone and glorifies ignorance, condemning intelligent discourse and questioning.

But know what, on the nonexistant chance that is an all powerful, all knowing being that somehow creates and controls everything, with a distinct and exacting plan and everything you do already laid out, he intended for you to do it!!!!! You can't say "But he didn't, we have free will", because you can't have free will AND everything you do already decided by 'the Grimm Brothers in the sky". However, even if you DO have the free will, I think he has bigger fish to fry that you saying a curse word or "G-D" (cue the eye roll) while portraying another human being.

[Elphie3]

Posted: 8/12/09 at 1:50pm

There are such things as bad scripts.

Although, then there are probably lots of other reasons to not do the show... lol