Terrance had a unique voice as Georg that I had trouble placing. I felt his voice had a low tongue position as well as AES narrowing. Something about his voice reminded me of Cher’s voice, which we discussed in class as a low tongue. The AES narrowing I feel explains why I almost thought it was slightly nasal. Although it was a clean choice, the rest of the cast, minus Georg (and Arpad who was different in his own way), had an operatic quality to their voices, high tongue, which drew attention to him. I suspect that he had some cricothyroid tilt because he had the volume to support him through the low tongue. There was also a jovial juvenile quality to his speaking voice with character, which made him very likable and easy to want to see succeed. …show more content…
He usually is cast as someone who has a brighter voice, more speech quality singing, and narrow AES would also be in effect. As I think about his character, I feel Terrance was a clean cast for the role from his voice. He had a standout quality that gave him an edge to the cast. He wasn’t the body type typical for Georg as Terrance is muscularly built. He goes to the gym regularly. Kodaly was very operatic in this production. Julian did very well in his characterization but I think he could have dirtied up his technique. Maybe try out a mid tongue positioning or bring in more speech quality into his singing. It was too clean. His sleaze was on target and enough without beating me over the head with it. I would love to see how AES narrowing may have altered his voice. I have seen Kodaly played as a quasi-Italian character: Mustache laden, with an affinity to kiss the hands of his customers. Mostly I have heard this character have a semi-twang or mid-velum voice. This was the first time I had seen this thick of an operatic vocal quality in Kodaly. I feel Julian’s presentational approach to Kodaly was not always easy to follow. His distinct spoken vocal choice did match well with his singing, although it was a bit fake and over-the-top for me. Final thoughts and
The play that was chosen to be read for the actor’s analysis was, “The Norwegians” which was written by C. Denby Swanson. As there is no specific style for this play, it is known to be categorized as a contemporary comedy as well as a character driven play. One of the character’s I would choose to play in, “The Norwegians” would be Olive. Olive is from Houston, Texas which doesn’t really require much of an accent.
Two thunderous voices can be seen in the arts during the late 20th century. James Earl Jones is well known for his roles in Hollywood films such as “Dr. Strangelove” and “Star Wars”, and has an even greater presence in the theatre community. His achievements as an actor were inspired by his hardships growing up, for he had a strong stutter until high school. Similarly, Geoffrey Holder suffered from a speech impediment at a young age, but would become a well-known artist. Holder is recognized for many different fields, he is an actor, dancer, choreographer, painter, and more. James Earl Jones and Geoffrey Holder overcame similar issues with speech, and built personalities around their professions, which were shown in all of their great works. Now they are known for their beautiful accomplishments, as well as their powerful voices.
As a student of hers, I am confident in saying that she puts all of her hard work and efforts into her productions. Hard work pays off and thanks to her, the transitions between all scenes especially act two scene three to the finale were a great success. She did a extraordinary job casting the actors and hiring Abby Peterson Murrel as the choreographer. Abby did a fantastic job directing the “Waiters Gallup” there was so much movement and this song/scene that it is easy for it to become a jumbled mess, however she made clean, cut movements that is was a breeze to follow. Rudolph Reisenweber played by Garrett Johnson, the head chef of the overwhelming restaurant, was well placed. We see the first and second cook dressed in completely different outfits making appearances on either side of the stage while other waiters are dancing to songs in the middle. The choreography kept things interesting and the dances in a musical can make or break the performance. Overall, Cherie and Abby did amazing jobs directing each person to have a place among a crowded
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.
... He really sold the part and did the part justice. Furthermore in the beginning of the flashback I had no idea who the main character was, but Christian developed the character subtly yet effectively.
One scene that clearly shows the true Gatsby is when he meets Daisy at Nicks house. He is very nervous and wants everything to be perfect for Daisy. To me that shows he is really hung up on what other people think. He wants to impress them the best he can. Obviously Gatsby has little confidence and feels he needs to overwhelm people with appearance opposed to his personality.
...n maybe could be played by another person in the background, and let Vereen concentrate on his leader role. With more narration in between scenes as well as acts, this will serve as a bridge so the audience can fully understand what is happening. Another element to add is more historical background on Charlemagne. This could have been included in the narration as only a short background was presented. On a brighter note, the costumes reflected the roles of the characters and that the characters connected the story through song; music is incorporated in the performance perfectly, not to mention the humor and comedic relief to some tragic parts. The candor of Pippin’s discovery of what is truly meaningful to his heart is a great ending and gives a warm-fuzzy feeling to the audience. This musical is most worthwhile and contains all the elements of a great production.
The other actors and actress were just as outstanding in their performances. Len Cariou plays Robert. He is Catherine’s father in the play. In the play, he is both humorous and appealing. Len Cariou is very good at portraying Robert’s insanity and brilliance all at once. What is interesting about Robert is that he does not give up his fight against his illness. Instead, he struggles up until his death to control and conquer it. Len Cariou displays this struggle so convincingly that he is able to draw you into his struggle. He is able to stir up emotions, such as sadness and anger.
The way he carries himself and his voice inflections really make the viewer feel like they are in the time period and can envision themselves in the scene of the play. The actor himself really seemed to believe in the play. The way he stormed out of the Ballyhoo scene, it was obvious that he was passionate about the play and really bought into the role. At other times, he spoke to everyone like a true gentleman. The kissing scene was a soft spot in the play, and he did a great job of the whole kiss and the speaking leading up to it. In addition, the actor did a great job of using a different voice in the play. Eastern European Jews were known for speaking differently that German Jews, and his voice was unique and correct for the time
...anos it is hard to try and use them as an example due to the fact that they are built differently than the castrati. They have tried to make artificial voices by mixing the voice of a male soprano and a tenor singing in the same range. Though the castrati reached their end and received negative reviews in their day, the want to hear their spectacular voices is still very strong with those involved with opera.
As the good prince of Arragon, Denzel Washington did a superb job, and as Claudio, the love-struck innocent, Robert Sean Leonard performed great just as he has done in any other theatrical movies that I have seen him in.
The sound design and choreography intensified the overall musical. They created the time, place, and mood through rhythm and great energy. The actors had wireless, behind the ear mikes, that attached to the mike pack which amplified the sound, making it very clear. I could easily understand what they were talking about or singing.
Physically, he resembled the real life Malcom; tall, thin, and wears glasses. This physical resemblance helped the audience remember that the characters in the show were based on real people from the past. Appearance aside, the way the actor played his character was extremely authentic. What I found most enduring was how you could see the characters transformation throughout the play through the actors’ delivery of the lines. At the beginning of the play when he was talking with Dr. King, the actor gave his lines bitterly; we could hear his anger towards Dr. King in his voice when he spoke. However, as the play progressed and Malcom began to find respect for Dr. King, the way the actor spoke changed. Although you could still hear the passion in his voice, it was rooted in understanding rather than resentment. Also throughout the play, the actors’ facial expressions revealed how he thought and felt about what he was speaking
in the way he speaks in a sly voice. He is the perfect actor to play
Firstly, to understand George as a character it’s important to look at his appearance: both how he presents himself to the world and how that reflects his nature. When we meet George, the stage directions tell us that he is “typically good-looking, he has the best ‘looks’ of the family, [and he is] tall and elegant of figure” (255). He is wearing attractive clothing that we soon find out he inherited from his late cousin Sebastian, altered to fit him perfectly by “a little Jew tailor on Brittannia Street” (261), and he carries with him a tennis racket in a zippered cover.