Comedy of Errors

The Drayton Hall Theater was much nicer than I thought it was going to be. The stage was a proscenium style and along either side of the theater there were steps that lead down to each row. It reminded me of a smaller version of my home theater the Peace Center in Greenville. The sound system was really great! The music that they played came out clear and the characters were easy to hear. The opening set looked like it was in the streets of an old town. In the middle of the stage sat what looked like a puppet show stage. Here is where the actors showed what happened before the begining of the play. The set changed only slightly throughout. It had a cage looking thing on stage left where this homeless "muse" type guy sat, some 2 buildings that characters could act through the windows or on a balcony and doors that accessed the stage. Later on a disco ball was lowered which I thought was fun!

The play was written by William Shakespeare and his original language is used. But looking at the costumes I'd say it looked like it was supposed to be set in the seventies instead of the Renaissance period that it was written in. Shakespeare lived from 1564 to 1616. I found it itneresting that on the USC Theater website they say that "It is widely believed that Shakespeare based the story on the work Menaechmi by the Roman playwright Plautus (254 BC - 184 BC)."

In the Comedy of Errors, two sets of twins, one set named Dromio and the other named Antipholus are separated after their boat cracked in half at a very young age. One set ends up in Syracuse and the other in Ephesus. Dromio and Antipholus of Syracuse travel to Ephesus and are confused when things start happening that they didn't do. Such as, Antipholus's wife, Adriana, locking him out of the house when she believed he was inside because it was his identical twin from Syracuse. And one recieving a chain (clap) that he has not paid for. All sorts of other mixups and mishalfs happen untill two of the twins are jailed for being insane and they magically escape (because the other set wasn't ever locked up). The head Nun ends up helping the town of Ephesus figure out that the two are twin brothers, and in a strange twist reveals that she is their mother, Emilia, and is reunited with their father Egeon.

Assignment # 8

1. Describe the difference between opera, light opera, and musical theater
Opera is an elevated style of musical theater, with works such as Mozart and requires highly trained voices. Light opera is less demanding with spoken words and less trained voices. Musical theater is like a commoner's version of opera. It is light and fun, but can still contain true musical talent.

2. How long does it take for someone to have a fully trained operatic voice?
It can take a very long time to develop their voice, often times it is developed from childhood on. Peak performance is usually obtained after age 30. It requires extreme control of breath and vocal cords.

3. Choose an Opera by Puccini? Describe and interpret.
Manon Lescaut is Puccini's first greatest Opera. It was written in the 1880's and it is set in four places-Amiens, Paris, Le Havre, New Orleans and consists of four acts. In the first act, when Manon arrives Des Grieux falls in love with her at first sight as she exits the coach. Des Grieux wants to meet up with Manon later after she visits the convent. Geronte is also in love with Manon, and plans to obduct her later.  Edmund  overhears and reports back to Des Grieux. Des Grieux declairs his love to Manon and asks her to go to Paris with him, she agrees. Geronte and Lescaut follow their carrage to Paris. In act II- Manon has left Des Grieux, when Geronte shows up to admire Manon she is swooned. Chevalier soon takes her into his arms and Geronte walks in on them. Manon mocks Geronte's age with a mirror. Geronte promises revenge and leaves. Lescaut then enters and warns the couple. Manon must gather her jewlery first, then she is taken to jail for theft. In act III on the street Le Havre, Des Grieux and Lescaut wait for dawn. They wish to save Manon before she is deported to America. As Manon is being put onto the ship to America Des Grieux begs to join her, and the capitan agrees. In act IV, now in New Orleans Manon is ailing and scared. She is scared because she thinks Des Grieux has left her, he returns but she dies in his arms.
My interpretation of this Opera is that it is similar to many operas, a story of love, lost love and sadness. It is about the life of a beautiful woman that is loved by more than one man. This shows that in life, if a woman is loved by one she will probably be loved by many more. Although Des Grieux loves her the most she rejects his love at one point. In the end his love is all Manon wants and she dies waiting for it. It is a very sad story, similar to many told in its time.

Assignment # 7

1. Describe the difference between a thrust stage and proscenium stage.
A thrust stage has a very large area that protrudes into the audience on three sides and gives them a closer view of the actors. Proscenium stages have a large arch that frames the stage. Proscenium means "infront of the scenery" in latin.

2. What is the fly gallery?

The fly gallery is the very tall area above the stage where the lights back drops, ropes and pulleys are housed. It extendeds several stories tall.

3. How does a scrim work?

A scrim is a very thin fabric drop that can be lit to add stage effects. If it is illuminated blue behind the scene it can give the illusion that the stage extends on forever. It can make the stage look dreamy or foggy. It can be used to show shadows as well.

Phantom of the Opera

Describe -
The Phantom of the Opera is a musical set in the Paris Opera House in 1870. It was written by Andrew Lloyd Webber. It is about the relationship between Christine, Raul and the Phantom. Christine was adopted by Madame Geri and grew up in the Opera House where she was coached by a secret "angel of music"-who was the phantom. He fell in love with her and revealed himself to her. But his love soon overtakes him and makes him act in violent ways such as killing people. The characters sang almost all of the movie long. Their dialogue is expressed in song. The phantom reveals himself at a Masquerade ball and demands that the next opera be Don Juan. Here he terrifies Christine, and she rips off his mask- revealing his scared hideous face to everyone. He takes her down into the underground lair below the Opera House where there is a lake and Raul follows them. Here, the Phantom makes Christine chose himself or Raul. She kisses the phantom and tells him that his soul is scared, not his face. He frees them both and she and Raul leave the Opera House as it burns. She and Raul stay together until her death and the phantom makes one last mysterious appearance at her grave- a rose with a black ribbon and the ring.

Analyze-
The Phantom of the Opera shows the elements and principles of design. The use of color is especially important- the Phantom's color was black, and red represented drama. Like when the Phantom entered the Masquerade wearing a red suit. Harmony is also very important, the costumes were all very intricate and yet they flow together into a scene. The lines of the stage and in the underground lake lead the viewers to the focus of the camera. The shape of the phantom's mask was very important as well. It was crafted so that it fit perfectly onto his face, it was white which could've represented innocence or uncontrollable things because the Phantom wore it to cover a malformity that was not his fault.

Interpret-
The meaning of this movie is like many-love. Operas are usually about love. The Phantom loved Christine, Christine loved the phantom's voice, but loved Raul. It seems like a sticky love triangle to me. I would say that the musical has a social meaning about the effects of love. Love can bind us and set us free. In the end Christine was set free by loving the Phantom enough to be kind to him and he let her go be with the one she loved the most. We also learned that even the most passionate, brilliant humans can remain undiscovered because of physical appearance. This musical stresses the importance of the power of looks. In the end Christine reveals that she is not bothered by the Phantom's face, but by his soul. But his face is the reason that he acts the way he does.

Evaluate-
I really enjoyed this musical. I would like to see it on Broadway. The songs were amazing as well as the singers. I could understand how those not used to seeing Broadway shows could dislike the constant singing. But, I feel that it adds beauty to something that could just be said in words. It takes some maturity to be open to the idea of "musicals" because they are not realistic at all and you have to see their artistic appeal.