Alanys Chavez
Come One, Come All to The Drowsy Chaperone
The play that I saw was The Drowsy Chaperone, directed by Michael Wise. My overall impression of this play was that it was exceptionally amusing! The set was quite simple, a small chair to the left of the stage with a record player, records, a lamp desk and an old phone. There were backdrop structures that could be moved to create different scenes, simple and functional. I expected this play to have a very simple plot, as this is what my professor had said it would be. I had no prior knowledge to what the plot was about. Upon seeing the play, I felt like the Drowsy Chaperone was not simple. Although funny I feel like it had a lot to say with simple characters. I enjoyed this play but I didn’t get quite a few of the jokes that referenced actors or people from a prior time period. The people around me laughed so I assume the jokes were witty. In The Drowsy Chaperone, I appreciated the acting, how the play was directed and structured, and the costumes. This play starts off with a
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The bold personality of Adolfo, played by Joey Rodriguez, was excellent. The ditziness of Kitty played by Torrie Hughes was on the spot. My favorite character was the drowsy chaperone, played by Aylin White. She was so charismatic! Although she had a very small part in the entirety of the play, her scenes were my favorite. Not to mention her voice is amazing, especially in, “We Stumble Along”. The relationship between the gangsters, played by Cameron Lang and Calvin Chervinko, and their ability to work together made the food pun scenes flawless. I thought that the best man, George, played by Patrick Leaton, looked nervous in the “Cold Feets” musical number and I couldn’t tell if that was part of the scene or whether he was trying really hard to not mess up. One character I did not understand was Trix, played by Marybeth Torres. She did a great job, I just didn’t like her character
Overall, the actors chosen to play each role were well picked. All of them portrayed the role they were supposed to very well. In particular, I think the best two were Ruby Archuleta and Ladd Devine. Ruby is a strong character in general, with obvious weaknesses, like her stubbornness in what may not have been the best times to be stubborn, making her well rounded. Ladd Devine is a good ‘villain’.
In this case the participants were not quite as seasoned as those mentioned above. The play itself was quite clever and entertaining. Varying degrees of acting and vocal ability made for a very diverse cast. Meshing an 1879 play with Millennium type humor is no small feat. The scenes were concise; costumes were extrem...
?A Servant To Two Masters? is the play that I studied. The structure is simplistic but also dynamic. It is quite an unusual play this may be something to do with coming under the genre of Comedia Del Art this is a form of theatre. Groups of actors would travel and perform their improvised plays. Their plays would usually be non-scripted and be very much like a pantomime. If plays were ever written then they would be written after they were performed. Comedia Del Arte was and still is enjoyed by many people. Lower class citizens could enjoy the simplistic storylines, as the upper class would admire the comedy within the play.
What an amazing performance, I was so invested in the characters and even though I had read the play before I still hoped George would not be cruel to Esther. When I read the play, I pictured Esther as a very shy woman, but in the performance, she was not as shy and stronger. Esther’s character could have been portrayed as pathetic but she is very likable and endearing. There was a sense of optimism that Esther would rise again. I also enjoyed the humor that the actors used during several scenes, that did not really come out in the reading for me. George and Mr. Marks’ accents were terrific and all the actors are talented and brought dimension to the characters. I fell in love with all the characters except for George, just because his character was such a scoundrel. The actor portraying George did an amazing job and his transition from the George in the letters to the unkind George was seamless. Mrs. Dickson had attitude, sass, and a wonderful stage presence. She developed a relationship with the audience. I think Mayme was my favorite, she was completely into her character and she had amazing stage presence as well. She played her part to perfection. Mrs. Van Buren was adorable and I really felt for her struggle and unhappiness. Marriages during that era were basically for the benefit of males and Mrs. Van Buren is a casualty of that period. Mr. Marks was so loveable and easy to like. The actor playing his character did such a great
In conclusion, the acting in the production was very good. I was held captivated by the accents and shocked by the language and dialect because I knew that this really happens and has happened. I felt like I could actually change what was happening on stage. For Instance, when the rumble is happening and Bernardo and Riff bring out the switchblades, I gasped. Silently to myself, I said "DON'T DO THIS. THIS WAS SUPPOSED TO BE A CLEAN FAIR FIGHT. YOU GUYS ARE MORE SIMILAR THAN YOU ARE DIFFERENT, JUST BEING FRIENDS." The same occurrence happened when Anita is assaulted by the Jets when attempting to find Tony to save him. I understood her feelings and wanted the Jets to get in trouble for their actions. I became invested in what happened to the
Some actors in this movie do a good job of portraying their character. However, a few take away from the overall experience, such as Tony Ross and Claudia McNeil. Tony Ross, who is an actor known for Pancho Villa, plays Stacey Logan. Claudia McNeil was an actress known for her role in Raisen in the Sun, and she portrays Big Ma. Both of these
Theater is acting, and each actor that was involved in this production was fantastic. Page Ogle who played Dolly did a very good job being a sweet talking, yet manipulative woman in the 1890s. I would have critiqued her on just one thing, slow down!
Overall, I enjoyed this play. Even with the dull ending, I found it to be entertaining and a good use of my time. The cast was great and they made good use of a decent
Not all plays are character-driven, in fact a great many are not. So if the characters are not what keep the audience intrigued, well then what does? There are many possible answers to this question. Paper Wheat uses the history of a group of people, a specific message commenting on a time period, spectacle elements such as song and dance, and the genre of comedy to keep its audience both engaged and entertained.
Their acting chops were very impressive whether it was comedic, emotional, or just stunning overall. Yet, on the other hand, some minor characters weren’t as well heard as others. I feel as the play could be better if some of the minor characters had projected their voice more, allowing their character to be known. However, although some voices were much stronger than others, all actors were full of talent, capable of dealing with script’s requirements, and did a good job
Ernest Hemingway once explained, "A writer's problem does not change. He himself changes and the world he lives in changes but his problem remains the same. It is always how to write truly and having found what is true, to project it in such a way that it becomes a part of the experience of the person who reads it." The attitude and "projection" with which the author creates a story is the tone. A difficult aspect of writing to master, tone is one that transitions a piece of writing from satisfactory to exemplary. In The Hammon and the Beans, Americo Paredes incorporates tone in a manner that allows the reader to understand the two-sided situation because the characters are living happy yet troublesome lives. Through including contradictory statements, irony, and comedy in the story, Paredes displays his ability to utilize tone in order to construct a complex work with pure grace.
Besides the firefighters/chorus, each character has a very clear and distinctive role in the play and had a different drive/obstacle for their respective goal. The wrestler wanted to first be able to stay in the attic, then not to get kicked out, then to further pursue to goals of the arsonist without getting caught or given over to the police. The actor did a good job on preforming tactics that would allow him to successfully make the actions seem realistic and dramatic. Something that I really liked is how the wrestler would act demanding yet pleading almost simultaneously. I feel like the characters played off of each other very well. An example would be when the husband was entering the attic and discovers that there are gasoline barrels there. Billy did a good job at playing off of the husbands anxious and frustrated nature by agreeing with the husband. If Iwas casted into the play, I would want to be the police officer. Even though this is a small role, I enjoyed how cherry the officer was and I enjoyed the scene of him in it. I would not want to play the wife of the person who died, because I disliked how static and restrictive her character was. I enjoy playing with emotions when I act, and her character not allow me to do
Now that I think about it, it seems strange that the majority of our class found no humor in this play. When one thinks of why this may be, it is simple. We do not laugh when we read this play because we have not changed. Since the time of this play, we have inched very little away from prejudice and belittling people because they are what we feel is different, therefore making them strange.
The play defies easy definition and various critics have labeled it variously as absurdist, existentialist, comical, burlesque, metaphorical or grim. The playwright on the other hand maintained that all through the creation of his work he strove to bring in the comic element and any tragedy that seems part of the play, may have crept in inadvertently and whenever it has been staged as a serious play, audience reaction to it has been cold.
in his office to Rita. He tells her that he "sometimes get an urge to