On Saturday, October 22nd, 2016, I saw a theatre performance of The Music Man at the Xavier University Theatre. The Music man tells the story of Professor Harold Hill, a corrupt traveling salesman who goes to River City, Iowa and poses as a boys’ band leader and organizer. He cons the people of River City and convinces them to pay him to create a boys’ marching band. He sells instruments and uniforms to them. In reality, Professor Harold Hill doesn’t know anything about music and he plans to leave town after receiving his payment, leaving the town without a marching band and without paying the people back their money.
The actors, musicians, and theatre technical crew all took part in bringing the show to life and making it enjoyable for the audience. The actors performed the show on a proscenium stage, and the musicians performed in the orchestra pit. The
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Texturing the set pieces with different shades bought more life to the set in that, when the stage light hit the set pieces, the set pieces picked out certain colors and highlighted them. The lighting of the show was monochromatic looking where different shades, saturations, and brightness of a single color on the stage were used. The use of monochromatic colors in lighting made the show passionate and moving. It also made the scenery look realistic. One thing that caught my eye was that in the beginning, the town of River City doesn’t seem to have much life until Harold Hill comes to town. This is because in the beginning there is not a lot of color that is seen through lighting. However, the town became more colorful after the arrival of Harold Hill. The show also had day and night lighting, which made it easier for the audience to know the time of day a particular scene was taking place. In addition, the show used a fly rail system to lower and raise some of the set pieces. This allowed for safe support and quick change of
The use of lights throughout the play did not vary often. Throughout most of the play, bright overhead lights portrayed the play’s main set room: a small town beauty salon. The lights created an atmosphere that was not only cheerful, but also warm and inviting. On each side of the stage, warm, more natural lighting was used to make the small outdoor areas more realistic. Lights were also used to convey
This production of What I Did Last Summer was performed in a proscenium theatre space; this space has many advantages and was a best fit for this particular play. Because of its shape, the proscenium theatre allowed for the actors to easily
The theatre can hold up to 1500 and more people, so each performance is in front of a huge audience. Many members of the audience can watch from the grounds directly in front of the stage. Up to 3000 people can stand there to be exact.
...ht bulbs on the side of the theater; these bulbs were focused on the cast members. Being that we were in an intimate session, the voices of the cast were able to project through the entire room. It was very easy to follow through to what was happening on stage because, Keith Grant, perfected each detail, and with the help of his amazing cast, executed it with great satisfaction to the audience.
The lighting for the show added yet another layer to this show and its production. The lighting was used in many different ways from the stardust to the lighting of a lantern. Not only did the lighting bring color to the stage but it brought color to the audience as well. A part in the play that I remember well is when the trunk is brought out and it is carrying the stardust, and when the stardust is activated and the lights are blinking within the trunk. This moment in the play captured my attention because the subtle use of the lights was just enough to grab the attention of the audience. The use of the lights in this moment brought the audience members to become engaged with the story on an even deeper level. Peter and the Starcatcher was able to use lighting in a subtle way to bring out the nuances of the characters and scenery of the play. Now, the lighting did bring out many colors within the backdrop. This backdrop, which I helped to paint, brought another color to the stage. Upon working with the backdrop I had a hard time thinking of how it would look to the audience. Although I had my doubts about the effectiveness of the netted backdrop they were washed away as the play opened and they blended in perfectly. The dark green paint covered just enough of the netting to give it a seaweed feel for the audience to
The play I went to see was The Music Man performed by the Mesa Encore Theatre at the Mesa Community College. I saw this performance on November 20th. The main performers in this play were Zac Bushman as Harold Hill and Lauren Koeritzer as Marian Paroo. Alongside them, a mix of both adults and children as young as 8 acted in this production. The cast and crew used appropriate clothing to match the time and place. Lights were utilized scarcely, with not much more than spotlights or front and back lights. The set was extravagant, cute, and fitting for the setting and time. Overall, this musical was vibrantly performed and left me with positive impressions regarding presentation and production.
The setup of the stage was very simple. It was the living room of a home in the early 1980’s. It looked like a normal household, and it had small things such as crumpled up pieces of paper lying around the wastebasket. It also had a couch, circular class table and a recliner in the living room. The dining room was to the left side of the stage and only had the dining table and surrounding chairs. There was a door in the back of the set where characters entered and exited through. Beside the door was a table and stool where Willum presumably worked on his blueprints for the hotel. The lighting design was great; it put you into the atmosphere of the
The costumes which are used for this particular production are also essential in dramatizing the on-stage action.
The lighting set the mood for the play. In key scenes the lighting added another dimension to show the conflict and hardship in the story.
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.
“Musical theatre isn’t some ancient, dusty, irrelevant invalid; it is, right now, a thriving, vigorous art form”. This statement by Miller (2007, p. 8) suggests that American musical theatre is still alive and abundant in today’s society. This essay seeks to support this claim by using three aspects of the ‘ecosystems of music’ framework (Schipper, 2009) to determine if musical theatre does indeed prosper in modern society. Specifically, this essay discusses the involvement of musicians and communities, the relevance of the musical contexts in today’s society, how it is disseminated and how it is supported by the media and music industry.
perform their section of the play. The back of the stage had a building painted
Theatre has heavily evolved over the past 100 years, particularly Musical Theatre- a subgenre of theatre in which the storyline is conveyed relying on songs and lyrics rather than dialogue. From its origination in Athens, musical theatre has spread across the world and is a popular form of entertainment today. This essay will discuss the evolution and change of musical theatre from 1980-2016, primarily focusing on Broadway (New York) and the West End (London). It will consider in depth, the time periods of: The 1980s: “Brit Hits”- the influence of European mega musicals, the 1990s: “The downfall of musicals”- what failed and what redeemed, and the 2000s/2010s: “The Resurgence of musicals”- including the rise of pop and movie musicals. Concluding
As Stella Adler so aptly explained, “the word theatre comes from the Greeks. It means the seeing place. It is the place people come to see the truth about life and the social situation”. Its where people come to exit reality, and enter reality in the same breath. Most theatre is not so farfetched as to be unbelievable. Even that which is has commonplace roots and themes that are applicable to everyday life. I will catalogue three different aspects of this alter-reality. I will define, explain, and elaborate on the aspects of acting, playwriting, and directing. I have chosen these aspects because I believe them to be the most integral parts of theatre. While the other aspects play a crucial role, these three stood out to me as the most important.
My experience watching a live theatre performance on stage was a fascinating one, most especially since it was my first time. I attended a staged performance of “The History Boys” in a small theatre called “The Little Theatre of Alexandria” at 8:00 pm on Wednesday June 8, 2016 in Alexandria, Virginia. The overall production of the play was a resounding experience for me particularly the performance of the actors and the design of the scene made the play seem real.