I had the pleasure of watching The Pirate Queen by Claude-Michel Shonberg at the Santa Margarita Dome on Sunday, April 21. Inspired by the real life story of stereotype defying Grace O-Malley, the musical shows the wild and inspiring life of a pirate, mother, and lover. As the story progresses, Grace not only helps save Ireland from the oppressive rule of Great Britain, but also learns how to find her way in the world, embracing her role as “woman” while remaining “fiery and unbowed”. One actor in this production that stood out to me was Robert Troyan, who astounded audiences as Terinan. Despite the denseness of the lyrics in the music and dialogue, I never had a problem hearing or understanding him. The quality of his voice was perfect for …show more content…
I think the best part about the lighting was when the Queen was fluctuating between doing what was expected and supporting her evil advisor, or listening to Grace and working out a solution, she was washed in a blue light to give the audience a hint that she would listen to Grace. A similar motif was reflected in the costumes. One of the clans that betrayed Grace's family and sold them out to Britain were costumes with red accents. The technical team also played music as the audience members were walking in.Overall the technical elements did a fantastic job at immersing the audience, making them feel a part of the story too. Overall, the musical The Pirate Queen isn't a very movement heavy show, there aren't many opportunities for big dance numbers, but when there was, the choreographer took the opportunity to make it into something really fun to watch. They used a lot of props, things like oars, brooms, and swords were used in dance numbers. As a dancer myself, I know how hard it is to dance with a prop on stage, it's like having another dancer there with you. They did a really good job of using the props to add percussion, and shapes to the numbers without making it …show more content…
While watching the show, I remembered an important lesson I learned last year: the acceptance of looking “ugly” on stage. Seeing Troyan and Ortiz embody their characters taught me a lot about immersion. they didn't just portray their roles; they became them, embodying their characters with no hesitation. throughout their performance, I was amazed by their ability to maintain character integrity. This portrayal inspired me to take this into my own craft and strive for that level of authenticity with any role I get. As a designer I find myself drawn to color symbolism, I really liked their use of color to portray good and evil. I thought it added a lot of depth to the storytelling. I feel like this could get pushed a lot further, color can be used to not just distinguish between good and evil, each character can get their own color so that the audience can follow that character's arc. I'm really excited to explore that in future design positions. Overall, I thought this was a fantastic production. The use of the space helped tell the story and each actor stayed true to their character, finding nuances that were beyond the level of most high school
Our journey starts in the year 1853 with four Scandinavian indentured servants who are very much slaves at the cold and gloomy headquarters of the Russian-American fur-trading company in Sitka, Alaska. The story follows these characters on their tortuous journey to attempt to make it to the cost of Astoria, Oregon. Our list of characters consists of Melander, who is very much the brains of the operation as he plans the daring escape from the Russians. Next to join the team was Karlson, who was chosen by Melander because he is a skilled canoeman and knows how to survive in the unforgiving landscape of the Pacific Northwest. Third was Braaf, he was chosen because of his ability to steal and hide things, which made him a very valuable asset to the teams escape. Last to join our team is Wennberg who we know is a skilled blacksmith who happens to hear about their plan and forces himself into the equation.
The choreography kept things interesting and the dances in a musical can make or break the performance. Overall, Cherie and Abby did an amazing job directing each person to have a place among a crowded stage. Last but not least, the costumes! This play was set in the 1890s, meaning it is very important to have correlating costumes so the audience can be aware of what time period they are in.
In "Constant Star", lighting told much about the play as soon as it began. Low, yellowish lighting and a bit of fog spread by ceiling fans filled the stage as the play started. This gave the stage the look of an old photograph, so the audience immediatly gathered that the show was taking place in the past. The mood was often set by lighting as well. Red lighting gave the audience a sense of foreboding while yellow indicated happy times. Also, lighting could substitute for props. During scenes involving the train, lights would flash on and off, making the stage look as if it was actually moving. This effectively created the illusion that the cast was on a train. Also, lighting was innovatively used to create a "jail" in one of the scenes by creating vertical bars on the stage around the convicts.
The Hippodrome setting played a big role in the success of the play, because the seats were close to the stage, which made the audience feel more intimate with the actors. The set was filled with everyday electronics and video games that were popular with today’s generation, and it was good way to capture the attention of the younger audience. The costumes worked for the actors because they were outfits that teens and young adults would wear, which made it easier to relate to the characters. The lighting for the production was awesome because it went well with the sound effects. For example, when Ian was doing a simulation for his new job, he set off a missile and when it exploded the lights changed from blue to red to symbolize seriousness of the situation.
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.
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 Queen Bee in the Corner Office” by Olga Khazan is an article many working women can relate to. From various jobs I have had, it is safe to say every working woman has at least encountered a “Queen Bee”. From high school we know a queen bee usually consists of being the prettiest girl in school; wearing the trendiest clothes; knowing all the hot gossip; and having the hottest boyfriend. According to Khazan (2017), in a work setting, the queen bee consists of three characteristics; the aggressive bitch, passive-aggressive bitch, and the tuned out, indifferent bitch. The aggressive bitch is a high ranking woman at a firm who usually verbally assaults anyone. A passive-aggressive bitch tends to be two-faced and has her “subtle,semi-rude emails”
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
...tly, the costumes in this production of Wicked were incredible! There were so many beautiful costumes! Many were very elaborate and detailed, while there were also various simple and elegant costumes. This was extremely refreshing to see as an audience member. The costumes always matched the characters’ emotions, which made the plot go along much smoother. I noticed that in numerous scenes the costumes were the same color as the lighting in the scene. I think the director did this on purpose to emphasize certain moods, but in some cases, a variety of colors would have worked better.
On a cold, brisk Tuesday night, I attended the musical called Urinetown by Mark Hollmann and Greg Kotis. Urinetown was held in Rowand-Johnson Hall, at the Marian Gallaway Theatre. As I quickly walked in the entrance, I noticed that people were wearing casual attire. I gave the usher my ticket and walked to my seat. This time my seat was located up at the front so I had a great view of the stage. This particular theatre is my favorite, it is very open and you can see from every seat. This musical is known to be a musical comedy which deals with different themes, unique text, and extraordinary technical elements.
“The Found Boat” by Alice Munro is a story about five teenagers that learn to explore and have a sense of freedom after finding a boat washed ashore after a flood. The boat becomes a common ground used between the characters to become closer friends and explore things in the world around them. This boat that they find gives these kids a new found form of freedom and they embrace that.
The loss of a loved one is heartbreaking. People wish they could still be here as if they never left. What’s hardest is letting go and learning to move on. In,”The Raven”, the narrator lost his wife Lenore and was left with heartache and sorrow. He couldn’t find a way to move on so he retained his depression and started to suffer. Poe exerts diction, syntax, allusions and symbolism to create the tone of depression showing that the raven symbolizes the melancholy and sanity of the narrator.
When my mom asked if I wanted to see this year’s Lakeside musical, I honestly was a bit unwilling. It’s not that I didn’t want to support my two or three friends up on stage and in the crew; I just don’t have a very good track record with high school performances. I’m a critic: I have always been very critical of myself, and very critical of others. I unwittingly judge the actors onstage, and end up feeling guilty because I probably could have done no better. On top of this warped superiority/inferiority was the nature of the musical they were performing; all throughout third grade I had been obsessed with the movie-musical Hairspray. I knew all the songs, most of the lines, and wasn’t sure if anyone could top Queen Latifah. But I was mistaken.
In the story "The Open Boat," by Stephen Crane, Crane uses many literary techniques to convey the stories overall theme. The story is centered on four men: a cook, a correspondent, Billie, an oiler who is the only character named in the story, and a captain. They are stranded in a lifeboat in stormy seas just off the coast of Florida, just after their ship has sunk. Although they can eventually see the shore, the waves are so big that it is too dangerous to try to take the boat in to land. Instead, the men are forced to take the boat further out to sea, where the waves are not quite as big and dangerous. They spend the night in the lifeboat and take turns rowing and then resting. In the morning, the men are weak and exhausted. The captain decides that they must try to take the lifeboat as close to shore as possible and then be ready to swim when the surf inevitably turns the boat over and throws the men into the cold sea. As they get closer to land a big wave comes and all the men are thrown into the sea. The lifeboat turns over and the four men must swim into shore. There are rescuers waiting on shore who help the men out of the water. Strangely, as the cook, captain and correspondent reach the shore safely and are helped out of the water, they discover that, somehow, the oiler has drowned after being smashed in the surf by a huge wave. (255-270) “The Open Boat’s” main theme deals with a character’s seemingly insignificant life struggle against nature’s indifference. Crane expresses this theme through a suspenseful tone, creative point of view, and a mix of irony.