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Musical Theater Students! Here is your assignment!

Musical Theater Students, here is your assignment!





Assignment



Please watch the following two YouTube clips and then reflect on the performances using the questions below. Post your answers in the space provided (you may need to create an account to do so)



1- Describe two things you noticed the actors do really well.



2 - Describe elements that could be improved in the performances. Why and or how?



3 - What performance qualities did you see in the video clips? Which of these do you think you need to improve upon for your own performance? Formulate and describe a plan in which you will begin to improve these qualities.

(You may need to watch the clips more than once)



Qualities to consider: diction, projection, blocking, vocals, dance, energy, facing audience, costume, set design, props/prop use, lighting, use of audio equipment relationships between cast members, line delivery, staying in character, stage layout, facial expressions, body language, audience engagement.

Thursday, January 6, 2011

15 comments:

  1. Post your written comments here! You can log in with an AIM or Google account. If you do not have one of these you will need to create an account.

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  2. out of both of the videos I like the second one was way better than the first one. It wasn't wat Iexpected there could have been way more dancing in the first video.I dont like how they had the circle thing because they couldn't move their hands while they danced.The reson why I liked the scond one was because it keeped me intersted the whole time I wish we can do that seen simler to that one =)

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  3. 1- In my opinion both videos did a great job on the timing of the songs and when they were suppose to do things. They both seemed as if they didnt mess up not even once.

    2- Video#1 doesn't seem like it needs improvement on anything while video#2 in my opinion was ok just for the fact that I felt as if the guy playing Ugly could of had gotten more into character when singing his part of the song, i found him corny.

    3- I need to improve on my vocals in order for the audience to be able to understand what i'm saying clearly. I also need to have more energy otherwise it would make me look dull and boring. I should also stay in character because i tend to change my face expression when i mess up either my lines or the dances. In order to do this I will have to keep practicing the dances constantly so that I wont mess up.

    -Angelina

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  4. Thanks for the responses Jessica and Angelina! Everybody else, keep on posting! Make sure you address all three questions :)

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  5. 1. While watching both videos helping me understand why both Mr.Galante and Ms.Nass push us so hard. The actors in each videos show how great,natural blocking could just be also the timing was great also in each music. My favorite was cat and ugly.

    2. In the first video I felt needed more improvement because it was kind off boring watching the frog and ugly (both characters)in one spot not moving so much just a little bit.I feel like the scene would've been excited if there was more dancing with ugly and frog.

    3. I feel that by watching each video help me understand that my words should be much more clearer and understanding. I will say watching cat and ugly in the video makes me a little bit nervous when it come to timing making sure that the timing is right. If there is anything that i should improve in will be my timing also my dancing.

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  6. Both were very good and entertaining.

    1st video: I like how they used the hula hoops as Lilly pads and everyone's energy was high and fun. I also agree with Jessica with the circle thing in the middle it looked like it made the actors to stiff and awkward (in a bad way). It also made the stage look small. I also expected a better performance being that there adults or older then us.

    2nd Video: I HATE THE CAT COSTUME!!!! There's way to much going on and was very distracting especially the tail.Ok now that that's out of the way the performance was very good with one exception,I felt like they lost the energy they began with ( I understand they're tired but try 2 play it off and not show it, unless u cant help it). Also even though i give the guy who played the cat props for being able to sing the song,I thought his voice was whiny didn't fit with the music, the music is jazzy but his singing like a chipmunk.

    3.I need to work on my singing so it doesn't sound like I cant sing or like this guy. Work out choreography for my scene and ,make sure I've got the lines down packed. Also I wanna make sure I keep my energy up throughout the whole play.


    -Asia (>^.^)>

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  7. While watching these videos I realized that we have a lot of work to do on the play. Both performances seem like they worked very hard, and actually seem so professional.


    The first video, the vocals were great, I could hear the two parts perfectly and their diction was outstanding. However I feel they could have used more dance moves, because it kind of bored me when they all stayed in one spot. The second video was my favorite one, firstly because the props were amazing, and the costumes too. The blocking was also pretty awesome if I do say so myself. The only thing i didn't like was the cat screaming sometimes when he sang the song, but I guess it was to make it more dramatic.

    These videos helped me realize that I need to work on my diction. Ms. Nass told me I need to slow down with my words, especially since my character Dot has that huge paragraph in the Wild Goose Chase. I must also think up some more expressions and movements for when my character isn't exactly singing or talking, or even when I am. I've already added some of my own already but there's always room for improvement. Also my dancing has to be on point especially the ending scene.

    -Tamiiya

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  8. 1) In both of the videos I've noticed that the actors have a lot of energy but using expressive body language and motions. They also use accurate singing which is best when keeping up with the music. In the first video, the dancers use energy and have great facial expressions. In the second video, the actors use great blocking and energy; especially when they run around the stage.
    2) I feel that in the first video, the two actors could use more of the stage instead of staying in that one spot. It's a little bit boring.
    3) I plan on improving my performance by clarifying my diction and projecting. I know that I need to work on blocking and facial expressions because I don't want to look confused on stage. I also need to work on staying in character. There's bound to be someone in the audience or a funny line that will make me laugh.

    ~TiaCherry

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  9. I actually like the first one better because the first one uses costumes unlike the second one. Although both uses costumes, the second one didnt use the appropriate costumes, since the musical is meant for animals, the better costumes to be used are to be dressed as animals, not humans.
    -Lakeram

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  10. I know that our musical production will be better than both videos combined!!!

    Maria Herrera
    (I stole Mr. Galante's identity :)- it is a secret!)

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  11. In the first clip I saw how the actors did really well in staying in character because they stayed serious through out the performance. They also had a good choreography when it came to the Froglets and the frog dancing and singing; good blocking. I felt that the costumes were not that impressive for the Bullfrog and Ugly, I believe they could have been better, but the Froglets were good because is just back up dancers for the Warts and all song. I believe that we should leave our blocking the same but although their costumes were not impressive they were better than ours and I believe we should take some of their costume ideas to help improve our own musical. In the second clip I thought that they had a good stage, like they had the needed prompts to make their musical look successful but one thing they could’ve done better was get Ugly a better costume because it seemed like he was just wearing regular clothing except for the feathers they made him have, but overall he doesn’t really look like a duck, I also thought that Ugly needed to sing louder in the show because I barely heard him sing when he was suppose to. I believe that we should set up our stage just the way they did because it was well set up and it would benefit us if we had a stage well set up like theirs.

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  12. I also believe we should turn towards the audience more so that we can be heard better because in the second video I barely heard Ugly.

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  13. In a performance there are always good and bad critiques and following taking constructive criticism can make a performance better. There are two videos which I will discuss its performance level and provide comments to improve what they can do better.
    In the first video they were had good value and spoke very clear. The actor also had great chemistry they look like they were actually speaking to each other, but didn’t ignore the audience and made eye contact with the audience. When it came to the dance in the beginning when someone was tap and another was counting it wasn’t in harmony. The dancers would occasionally sing their part before the actual song. The costume for Ugly was not well put, they made ugly look like a human he had no animalistic qualities of a goose.
    A performance quality that I would improve would be on my singing harmony with the others. In order to do this I would listen to the song more and memorize all the cues to know when to start singing. I can also look at the body language of all my fellow actors which may also improve building chemistry with everyone.
    In the second video the actors stayed in character, they had great props and costumes which set the scene really well making it more joyful for the audience. However, the cat showed his back to much to the audience. When Ugly began to sing it was difficult to understand he sang to low and it was difficult to comprehend what he was saying.
    In order to improve in volume I will not face the audience my back do exercises that focuses on annunciation skills.

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  14. This has shown me that we need to work harder on the show. I believe Ugly and Bullfrog's costumes looks just like a human and doesn't go with the show. The Cat's costume goes with the show and makes the character look just like an animal. Everyone in are show needs to show more energy and be more focused. Some parts in this video I couldn't hear Ugly that much because he was singing to low. I really enjoyed the Warts and All scene because they were in sync and the dance was fun to watch. Over all these performances were very entertaining and made me realize we need to try harder.

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  15. 1)I liked the first video the best. The actors appeared more enthusiastic and they were well prepared in knowing their lines and memorizing their dance moves to the tee. They sung with such joy that even one who wasn't part of a class remaking the play like I am, would want to sing along with it. They were loud enough and made great eye contact.
    2)The performance in video #2 needed the most improvement. For one, the costumes were unbelievable. The costume designers did not do a good job at resembling an ugly duck nor a cat. Secondly, the set was not appealing to the eye. It was a little on the 'dark and gloomy' side which after some time caused me to become overcome with boredom.
    3)The first video made me realize that I have not been putting my all into this play. I plan to improve on my performance by studying my lines more consistently, putting in more effort and energy, and projecting my voice more.

    - Emony H .

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