On Sunday, April 2nd, I personally had the honor to attend The Cypress College 50th Anniversary Production of Follies. Follies is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and the book by James Goldman. The show was directed by Jim Hormel. Follies follows the story of two couples, Phyllis and Ben, and Buddy and Sally. Starting out as Follies show girls, Phyllis and Sandy, later meet their true loves Ben and Buddy. These characters show their true emotions for each other, the hardships the young adults had to face, and the regrets many of them have after marriage. The show had an amazing variety from the storyline, to characters, to costumes, music, and the overall production. The storyline was a beautiful tragic story, all while
For starters, the costumes in the show were gorgeous. You can tell that a lot of time went in to the costumes of the show. My favorite section of the costumes had to be from the act two opening. The show girls in beautiful, glamorous, and very big pink costumes really made them pop. Each girl had a prop that made them stand out and the materials used for them differentiated all the costumes. My favorite musical number was by far “Who’s That Woman.” Stella’s character, portrayed by Cynthia Navarro, was beautiful. The choreography in the musical number really made me feel like there was a ‘mirror’ there. It made me feel very nostalgic. The way I felt after the number was very bittersweet. Seeing all the show girls with the past version of themselves was very overwhelming, but it gave a great backstory for each character in a way. The music in the show was overall a genius masterpiece. The music left very moved throughout the show. Although, at the end my favorite aspect of the show was a the set. The set was breath taking. It was nothing over the top, but just right. The projection aspect of the boarder around really swept me into the story. The setting of the Follies girls returning made me feel like I was in a New York warehouse. The best set was when the semi-follies show begins. The pink curtains, the pearl white staircase, and the pink lighting was very memorizing to
The musical was performed in the Cumberland Hall Auditorium at Fayetteville Technical Community College. It
The performance ‘Chasing the Lollyman’ by Debase productions succeeded in using the Dramatic Languages to create a Dramatic Meaning that comments on a social and political issue. This, along with the effective manipulation of the dramatic conventions, has allowed Debase to successfully recognised the Epic Theatre style. Chasing the Lollyman is one man show starring one of Queensland's most dynamic and funny Indigenous performers, Mark Sheppard. He shares many stories, a celebration of urban Indigenous identity and takes a satirical look at the media and popular culture. Playing a variety of characters, Mark pokes fun at everything from Neighbours (what would it be like if a Murri family moved into Ramsey street) to polities. The dramatic meaning of the performance is if Australia wants to become one, we need to learn to accept each other for their differences.
Every performance was presented with charm. The flashing, changing colors seem to go along with the performances. The director was humorous. The performers outfits were on point too. I liked the color coding of the vocalists, Jeremy, Jordan, and Rowan. Also, Julie wore a pretty suede dress and had a great voice. It was nice to see her come out for the 2nd time to sing. When Spencer kept playing his saxophone in some of the performances, it was just amazing. Some of my favorite performances were Sittin on the Dock of the Bay, Ain’t too Proud to Beg, In a Sentimental Mood, and more. It really made me feel like I was in New Orleans all over again. I absolutely love Otis Redding and The Temptations music, so I wasn’t new to these songs they played. I was sitting in the back (R-125) where I felt comfortable to bob my head to the music. If I ever come back to see another concert, I will make sure to get a seat in the back again. I adore Jordan that did sung the Temptations song. I thought it was exciting to see his enthusiasm while on stage keeping us engaged, but everyone did great in their own way. The song by Duke Ellington made me feel melancholy, the piece was soft. I just couldn’t believe how well everyone contributed and gave an outstanding
The stage performance of Chicago offered a spectacle that I expected before attending the show. I knew there was going to be scantly clad girls with dark makeup and saucy attitudes. The performers brought to life all that was raunchy in the entertainment business during the roaring twenties. The lifestyle in Chicago featured jazz, booze, sex and crime. More importantly, Chicago had beautiful, young women with the dream of having their own Vaudeville act. The two main female characters, Velma and Roxy were two such women hoping to capture the public's attention. The composition of the show is a metaphoric integration of Vaudeville type acts amongst the book scenes and diegetic musical numbers.
I have no negative comments about the play. I really enjoyed this production of Guys and Dolls and believe that the director's vision was clearly dispayed on the stage by the actors, the musical ensemble and the production team. I thought the set design was amazing and that the costumes perfectly portrayed the style of the 1940s. All of the hard work and dedication put into the play, showed through the actors and the set resulting in a wonderful musical worthy of Broadway.
Throughout the musical, the prowess of each individual performer was on display. Every performer, with the exception of Kristine, expressed a power and vibrato that was breathtaking; the highest notes lilting and the lowest notes thundering. I was in awe during a majority of the performances because of the commanding singing in each performer.
Recently, I had the pleasure of seeing the fall production of Argonautika at the Westmont High School Theater directed by Jeff Bengford and written by Mary Zimmerman. Mary Zimmerman’s adaptation of Argonautika carefully selects which pieces of a Greek story to emphasize, where to begin and end the story, and which characters to feature. Argonautika is very much an ensemble piece, with every actor standing out in multiple roles. Her version focuses on Jason and Medea and begins with an invocation by the chorus that summarizes the story of Helle and Phrixus. The last showing on November 21st of Argonautika by the Westmont High School Performing Arts Department, was exciting beginning to end. Bengford’s production Argonautika greatly captures the intentions of Mary Zimmerman’s playwright into an exciting play for the audience.
The production had many elements which for the most part formed a coalition to further the plot. The characters, the three part scenery and costumes represented well the period of time these people were going through. As far as the performers entering and exiting the stage, it could have been more organized. There were a few times when the performers exited at the wrong times or it seemed so due to the echo of the music. At certain moments the music was slightly loud and drowned the performers. Many of the songs dragged on, so the pacing could have been more effectively executed. Though the music was off at times, the director's decision to have most of the songs performed center sage was a wise one. Also the implementation of actual white characters that were competent in their roles came as a great surprise to the audience and heightened the realism.
... my sister and I returned to New York. Once again we made the trek to the Nederlander. We took our seats and relished the memories. While the cast was different, the affect was similar. It opened our eyes and renewed our appreciation for those that are different than us. I feel in love with it all over again. Even though I had seen the show in Indianapolis and Chicago, there was something about sitting in that theater that made it special.
In a country where 45 million people struggle to survive below the poverty line, inflation continues to rise as wages remain the same. What happened to the American Dream? As the rich continue to get richer, even those in the middle class can’t seem to catch a break. The structure of American society makes it nearly impossible for those in poverty to rise above, and there are other factors, including race and gender, which play a role.
Middletown, an ordinary enough sounding name for a town yet it coincides with a not so ordinary play. Right away the play starts off with a public speaker trying to include everyone she could ever think of into her welcoming remarks, which doesn’t seem to be all that strange but when it’s coupled with slightly ridiculous body movements, such as rolling on the floor, it does indeed make for a strange sight. After that, the play continues with a slightly off kilter type of humour where seemingly ordinary citizens say or do rather unusual. Despite the array of unusual things that happen throughout the production there is quite a bit of depth to this script and I think that both the director and the actors handled this balance of humor and depth
The routine of everyday life is well-presented in the way In the Heights goes through a weekend of a city block in Washington Heights during the summer. When it comes to the characters and the work they do, there are the usual jobs related to Hispanics. There is Usnavi, the owner of De La Vega Bodega, Kevin and Camila Rosario, owners of the taxi cab service called Rosario's, and Daniela, who owns a salon. Throughout the play, there were a lot of casual activities I was able to relate to, such as my grandmother always taking the time to buy a lottery ticket if it was accessible, having a desire to visit the Dominican Republic again, yet never seeming to have the time like Usnavi, and hearing the idea of someone being sent to the DR for the summer
Leaning on resplendent visuals and morbid overtones, this reborn “Macbeth” infuses some fresh air in the Shakespeare’s Scottish tragedy whose cinematic high point was reached with Orson Welles’ 1948 memorable adaptation of the play.
I chose to do my second critique on the production Lost in the Stars. Lost in the Stars was written by Maxwell Anderson. The music was by Kurt Weill, and the film was directed by Daniel Mann. The original play was performed on Broadway from October 1949 to July 1950. Then in 1974 a film was made. This musical drama was based on Alan Paton's novel, Cry, The Beloved Country. Taking place in South Africa in the year of 1949, the musical drama begins with the black preacher, Stephen Kumalo, pining for his son Absalom, who has long since left home to earn money for his future education. Reverend Kumalo has had no word from Absalom in a year. Reverend Kumalo soon finds out that his son has been arrested and condemned for killing a white man. Before Absalom is hung for his