The Democrat Convention: A Creative Challenge

 

Convention Director, Glenn Weiss - Photo credit: Janis Friedlander Svendsen/Facebook

The creative process has always fascinated me.  The process of growing a work of art from an idea to its ultimate presentation is a journey filled wrong-ways, bumps, dead-ends, and potholes. But every now and then a great idea appears from the sky somewhere and things come together.  It seems like a miracle.

I thought a lot about the creative process when watching the Democratic National Convention last week.  The format for a national political convention has remained constant for the last 60 years or so.

 But now, during the Covid-19 epidemic, the organizers were tasked to transform the entire shebang to somehow fit into a TV show with no audiences. Impossible!

 It is difficult to even consider that level of challenge. Glenn Weiss, the “show’s” director, has previously been successful at steering  the Tony Awards, The Kennedy Center Honors and other shows, but what we saw last week was a monstrous eight hours of content over a four day period.  Dozens of cameras, live and taped, worldwide locations, kids and adults.   

 Talk about a daunting challenge!

 

The result? A presentation that received resounding acclaim from everywhere. It was so successful that I doubt we can ever go back to the convention of old. 

 For me, conventions have gradually lost their luster, excitement, and drama over time.  The votes were a foregone conclusion, deals with warring factions were made way before the big night ever occurred, and all the quirky regional stuff like favorite sons and local issues were swept under the rug.

 What was left? A scrubbed, choreographed, and predictable infomercial for a party that was designed only for television.

 Then 2020 comes along. This convention held my attention and presented the major actors (speakers, candidates, party leaders) in an intimate manner that allowed us to concentrate on what they were saying and if they could be believed. Yes, the color, banners and screaming were gone, but maybe we had enough of that, anyway.

 I watched every minute of it.

 The show bounced all over the country, featuring important people and everyday folk talk about how they hated President Trump or how they loved and respected Vice President Biden.

 Things were not perfect and there were several technical glitches, but overall, it was a stunning display of long-form storytelling and technical virtuosity. The production quality – lights, sound, and camera angles – were amazingly good.

 The biggest, but not only, drawback of the entire affair was one aspect of the overall messaging. In looking at the entire program over eight hours there appeared to be two areas of focus – Biden is a great guy beloved by all, and diversity is the party’s most important area of interest.

 Cultural and gender and diversity issues played center stage.  It played a more dominant role than the economy, Covid, climate change or health care.  Never once was there a businessperson hailed as someone we should emulate. Many stories were told, but business and success from the private sector was missing.  A mistake that limited the scope of the party.

 One of the smartest decisions the planners made was hiring professional actors to be the hosts – all women. They didn’t have a lot to do but were, for the most part, superb, poised and well-spoken.

 My only problem was with Julia Louis-Dreyfuss who hosted the final evening.  Of the four (Kerry Washington, Tracee Ellis Ross, Eva Longoria) Louis-Dreyfuss was the biggest star and I guess she wanted to make sure that the audience had to be reminded of that. 

 She inserted herself too much into the presentation and threw in snarky and inappropriate jokes. The other hosts understood their role and were smooth and professional – and stayed out of the way. They allowed the speakers to take the spotlight.

 We heard the Biden life stories over and over, which is expected. But I felt that they came close to going over the line by squeezing every drop of emotion in the sad death of Biden’s son, Beau.  It’s a tough and important story to tell, but was a bit too melodramatic at times.

The music interludes I found to be underwhelming and out of place.  Although several big stars performed, the only ones that were memorable were Common and John Legend and the Chicks (formerly the Dixie Chicks) performing a wonderful acapella Star-Spangled Banner.

 By far, this biggest blockbuster of the entire four-evening set was the roll call.  We got to see each and every state and territory.  Some of the speakers were governors or senators, but many others were locals dressed in native garb shot against glorious landscapes.  It was real and something we never got to experience in the old format. 

 Many of speeches were powerful.  We expected Barack and Michelle Obama to give powerhouse addresses, and indeed they did.  Michelle is now a superstar in her own right, having penned the best-selling memoir ever written.  Her talk was emotional and commanding.

 Her husband chose to give his speech in the city where our constitution was written, Philadelphia. His searing address was both frightening and heartfelt.  He sincerely fears for the future of our democracy.

 Each speech had a different “set up”. Michelle was sitting in her home, Obama was in a museum display room, etc.  But the speeches for Kamala Harris and Joe Biden were both given in a hall to imitate a convention hall – big stage, podium, and some seats for an audience (occupied by photographers and writers).  It was a bit awkward, but I could not fault the directors too much for that.  Not every scene worked.

The best scenes came up suddenly and without warning.  Gabi Gifford’s speech was affecting. She struggled with speaking a bit but delivered a powerful message of gun control legislation. Kristin Urquiza talked about her father, a Trump supporter, who died from covid-19, and maybe the most emotional of all, Bayden Harrington – a 13-year old stutterer - speaking courageously about meeting  Biden recently who immediately shared his own struggle with stuttering.

You had to be made of stone not to get teary-eyed by this boy’s charm and grace. It was a real story and a real moment that he shared with Biden.

Several Republicans (citizens and politicians) were also featured who could not find it in their hearts to follow their party’s flag holder to the polls.  This came off as a convincing message.

The final speech, of course was Joe Biden, a talk that I did not look forward to hearing. Biden is a great public servant and genuine guy, but he has never been a particularly good orator. 

 But this time he won the prize.  Biden was authentic and believable.  He did not shy away from difficult topics (like bashing Trump) but gave a focused and forceful case as to why he MUST be elected the next president.

 He has been criticized as going off on tangents and losing his train of thought on occasion and seeming old, but this speech proved that he’s got the goods to go all the way.

 And the convention itself broke forth, creatively, and against all odds to produce an entirely new model for national conventions.  Even when things get more normal around here, I doubt if the old style will come back.  Glenn Weiss and his team ushered in a new era.