The Deaf Extra

What function do extras serve in musicals? Singin in the Rain (Donen and Kelly, 1952) has attained the status of classic in part for the way its stars (Gene Kelly, Donald O'Connor, Debbie Reynolds) monopolize screen movement and subsequently our attention. In many musical sequences in the movie, only the stars seen to hear the music that makes them dance. The hierarchy of star and extra performs the same function as an Ipod, isolating and privatizing sound. In the following scene, for example, Cosmo (O'Connor) sings to Don (Kelly) about the overriding imperative of the entertainment industry: make them laugh.

                                            
The division of labor in the classic musical resembles the one instituted by Odysseus on his boat: desiring to hear the song of the Sirens (who traditionally lured sailors to crash their boats on the rocks), Odysseus plugged his rowers' ears with wax and tied himself to the mast. While the master listened and emoted to song, the rowers had to keep their heads down and could not even tap their feet. In Singin' in the Rain, the extras exist in a similarly noiseless space. Each extra seems imprisoned in a separate chore, subordinated to cadence of broom, dust brush, and carrying of props rather to the rhythm of song.The deftness of O'Connor is offset by the deafness of these stagehands.

What's the effect of this juxtaposition? Do extras resist performance entirely, even if they seem to be doing assigned tasks that reflect no cognizance of the action at hand? What's interesting is how unresponsive they seem to the musical that is happening around them. This unresponsiveness to the effort at humor (or making others laugh) never achieves deadpan status (a badge reserved for the unsmiling co-star listening to the jokester) and is held one notch below decisive inexpression. The film's myth rests on the illusion crafted between working and expressing: just think of how much mileage Gene Kelly gets out of an umbrella by not using it to keep himself dry. In 'Make Them Laugh," sweeping the floor is pointedly contrasted with the way Cosmo dances and, on his knees, walks in place on it. At one point however the belabored extras seem to cross the line, or attempt to do both: they throw Cosmo off the board they are carrying in beat to his song. My grandpa said go out and tell them a joke...(workers tilt the board). Does it reflect their proletarian annoyance at this fop making their task heavier? Do this gesture merely shore up the lead (does Cosmo become funnier?) or to send Cosmo a message (do they become more serious?) Do they dispatch of Cosmo in order to make the joke at his expense (constituting a temporary strike against the production we are seeing) or to his profit (to throw the dancer off balance and thereby reaffirm his grace)? The film makes it difficult to decide on the upshot of the extras' motion to throw the actor aside: it is not even clear whether this constitutes a rare instance of workers showing good timing or whether it is yet another testament to life forced to live by the clock.