Pros And Cons Of Straight Plays

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Theatre is composed of two major show types, straight plays and musicals. Both shows have their pros and cons, typically resulting in the audience liking one over the other. These two show categories make a theatrical season, usually consisting in a fall play and a spring musical, allowing drama students to have an option of what show they would like to audition for. However, actors enjoy performing in both straight plays and musical for different and complex reasons.
Straight plays only consist of verbal roles, no singing or dancing. There are a majority of actors who only enjoy speaking and focusing on acting. If an actor is uncomfortable singing or dancing for an audience, they sway towards non-musical, or straight plays. The public views straight plays as less challenging than musicals, but plays require much stronger acting and character impersonation. In a play, an actor cannot hide behind a pretty voice, they have to show their character through movement and verbal tones. Plays can also carry a more emotionally strong message and have a bigger impact. In the audition process, actors are only required to recite a monologue or cold read a scene from the script. Straight plays usually attract a more mature …show more content…

Being a triple threat, dancing, singing, and acting, will help the actor the most in receiving the lead on their desired role. A musical is physically demanding, meaning the actor has to be strong mentally and physically. Rehearsal is typically four to five months, due to learning all the music, lines, and choreography. The cast and crew are larger for muscle, having to hire a director, vocal coach, choreographer, and the cast consisting of leads and the ensemble. Auditions require the actor to learn a choreographed dance and sing a thirty second verse from a song. Musicals attract audience members that are young and old, entertaining both with song and

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