The two actors are among a small but notable list of people in the industry who has criticised the increasing use of trigger warnings at the beginning of plays. Why, exactly?
Theatre should not loose the ability to leave audiences ‘shocked and disturbed’, Ralph Fiennes has said in a recent interview with BBC One Sunday, in a critique of the growing prevalence of content and trigger warnings before performances. The actor called for content warnings — with the exception of warnings related to physical conditions such as epilepsy — to be scrapped, for the sake of maintaining the theatres ability to ‘be alive and connect in the present.’
The actor, famous for playing Voldemort in the Happy Potter series, and starring in films such as The Grand Budapest Hotel and The English Patient, is not a fan of forewarning, then. And neither, it seems is Ian McKellen. The Lord of the Rings star is another notable advocate for the abolition of content warnings, describing the signs that were presented in the foyer of his run in Frank and Percy as ‘ludicrous.’
When I first stumbled upon the latter’s comments in a Guardian article earlier this week, I was surprised for a number of reasons. The first of these was because McKellen has spent much of his life advocating for human rights of all sorts, most notably as a founding member of Stonewall queer rights group. Being accommodating for those with differing needs to himself, I had assumed, might come more naturally. But the second reason that I was surprised is that both McKellen’s and Fiennes’ criticisms of content warnings, as noble in intention as I am sure they were, make absolutely no sense whatsoever.
Describing his aversions to trigger warnings, Fiennes’ commented that he felt his theatre experience as a student benefitted from not being told that ‘by the way in King Lear, Gloucester is going to have his eyes pulled out.’ McKellen shared similar objections, stating, ‘I quite like to be surprised by loud noises and outrageous behaviour on stage.’ Now, perhaps shockingly, I do in fact completely agree with both of these statements. Theatre is, undoubtedly, an art-form that relies on the most visceral reactions. These are often shocking; they often need to be. But what comes across in these concerns is not a consideration for the fine and delicate preciousness of theatrical atmosphere, but rather two men who don’t seem to have ever seen a content warning in their lives. Because while trigger warnings serve to inform potentially sensitive audience members of certain elements of a play, that is where their jurisdiction ends. This means that the information that is displayed on these warnings does not include: the characters involved, the frequency of the given event occurring, or a timestamp for when this potentially impactful scene will occur. If it is the preservation of a suspenseful atmosphere that you are concerned about, then I would venture to suggest that talking on the radio about Gloucester having his eyes removed is probably far more substantially damaging to this sacred ambience than the words ‘Contains Scenes of Conflict and Gore‘ scrawled at the bottom of a poster. Then again, given that this particular example is approximately 400 years old, it is most likely safe to discuss spoilers. To address the second of these quotes, from Ian McKellen , I propose a thought experiment: imagine I were to walk up to you and slap you around the face with a wet fish. Most likely shocking, and more than a little surprising. Job done. Now, imagine I were to come up to you and say that at some pre-determined but un-disclosed point in the next two hours, I will slap you around the face with a wet fish. Ambience, I think, is preserved. At worst, I dare say, a little extra suspense has been added to the whole endeavour.
This analogy ends abruptly, of course, when you consider that for neurodivergent people, individuals living with mental health conditions such as PTSD, and those who may have experienced acts of violence commonly depicted on stage — such as sexual assault — the risks of being inadvertently exposed to content designed to leave people ‘shocked and disturbed’ are a lot more severe than a lightly sore, damp, cheek that smells faintly of salmon. Theatre is in a dire state; with ticket prices soaring and funding on the floor. I dare say that commenting on such foyer decor is not the best use of these inimitable actors time.
Pomelo 
Leave a comment