“The messenger has arrived”: the Angel of America as a prophet of intra-action on stage

Abstract

ABSTRACT This article analyses representations of the Angel in the staged productions of Tony Kushner’s play Angels in America across a span of 25 years, from the 1993 Walter Kerr Theatre premiere on Broadway to the 2017 staging at the Royal National Theatre in London. Using Karen Barad’s theoretical framework of intra-action, I argue that the Angel in the play stands for the dynamism of competing forces of Heaven and Earth, which Barad both represents and challenges. In particular, I emphasise the phenomenology of transcendence, depending on the affordances of the theatrical medium. Barad’s definition of apparatus and her agential realist ontology offer a valuable framework for understanding the complexity and significance of stage design elements, such as the flying gear for the Angel. By recognizing the dynamic, interconnected, and performative nature of such apparatuses, we can gain deeper insights into how theatrical effects are created and how the boundaries between the physical and conceptual realms are navigated in the realm of live performance.