Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

The grotesque should be present

Constellations is where Groundhog Day meets 50 First Dates meets Sliding Doors meets Edge of Tomorrow meets What the Bleep do We Know

Christian Coulson stars as Roland and Victoria Frings as Marianne in Nick Payne’s Constellations.
Christian Coulson stars as Roland and Victoria Frings as Marianne in Nick Payne’s Constellations.

I overheard a few conversations after the show. Constellations at the Old Globe confused some people. It should be stated that some people are persistently confused.

The show, by its own admission, is a personification of string theory. This is confusing in more than one way, because (also by the show’s own admission) the laws of particle physics don’t cross over into the realm of classical physics.

How can the infinite possibilities of the quantum field be applied to the relationship between two people? It can only be done as a literary device. Constellations is where Groundhog Day meets 50 First Dates meets Sliding Doors meets Edge of Tomorrow meets What the Bleep do We Know?

Sponsored
Sponsored

The common thread with all of those movies is the manipulation of the time line. The difference in Constellations is that time isn’t being manipulated in order for the characters to grow or get it right as in the movies mentioned above. In Constellations there is no best time line. There is no correct scenario.

There are scenarios which feel more pleasant than others, but on the whole the relationship stays in the light. There is no dark side to the show where abuse or violence enters. However, if we are considering the infinite nature of possibility then the grotesque or twisted should be present.

I’m not suggesting that the characters don goatees a la the famous Star Trek episode but a scenario that went down that dim path to destruction would be appropriate and maybe even necessary in order to fulfill the concept of the show. Since there is a fundamental duality expressed in theories about particle physics then the darkest of all possible timelines is something we could expect to be included in Constellations.

Constellations closed May 8.

The latest copy of the Reader

Please enjoy this clickable Reader flipbook. Linked text and ads are flash-highlighted in blue for your convenience. To enhance your viewing, please open full screen mode by clicking the icon on the far right of the black flipbook toolbar.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

The Eurovan man can

Best services
Christian Coulson stars as Roland and Victoria Frings as Marianne in Nick Payne’s Constellations.
Christian Coulson stars as Roland and Victoria Frings as Marianne in Nick Payne’s Constellations.

I overheard a few conversations after the show. Constellations at the Old Globe confused some people. It should be stated that some people are persistently confused.

The show, by its own admission, is a personification of string theory. This is confusing in more than one way, because (also by the show’s own admission) the laws of particle physics don’t cross over into the realm of classical physics.

How can the infinite possibilities of the quantum field be applied to the relationship between two people? It can only be done as a literary device. Constellations is where Groundhog Day meets 50 First Dates meets Sliding Doors meets Edge of Tomorrow meets What the Bleep do We Know?

Sponsored
Sponsored

The common thread with all of those movies is the manipulation of the time line. The difference in Constellations is that time isn’t being manipulated in order for the characters to grow or get it right as in the movies mentioned above. In Constellations there is no best time line. There is no correct scenario.

There are scenarios which feel more pleasant than others, but on the whole the relationship stays in the light. There is no dark side to the show where abuse or violence enters. However, if we are considering the infinite nature of possibility then the grotesque or twisted should be present.

I’m not suggesting that the characters don goatees a la the famous Star Trek episode but a scenario that went down that dim path to destruction would be appropriate and maybe even necessary in order to fulfill the concept of the show. Since there is a fundamental duality expressed in theories about particle physics then the darkest of all possible timelines is something we could expect to be included in Constellations.

Constellations closed May 8.

Comments
Sponsored

The latest copy of the Reader

Please enjoy this clickable Reader flipbook. Linked text and ads are flash-highlighted in blue for your convenience. To enhance your viewing, please open full screen mode by clicking the icon on the far right of the black flipbook toolbar.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

San Marcos Harvest Fest, The Distinct Modernism of San Diego

Events October 13-October 16, 2024
Next Article

Scott Peters aide gets free travel and hotel from Big Pharma

Todd Gloria sucks up money from Big Billboards
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader