* What we covered in our first class
* Sights around London on our way to the theater
* Our fabulous "free" dinner
* Our first show! (A Little Night Music)
I'm going to credit Becca Stone for the majority of this blog entry, she took some incredible notes in class and wrote a marvelous description of A Little Night Music.
Without further ado, here is a summary of what we covered in class:
"Theater is a celebration of language" -John Clum
In its simplest form, a script of a play is merely words on a page that state something or tell a story. What theater does, through a play, is glorify the words on the page, putting them in front of a willingly receptive audience, with actors moving and creating a connected picture, with lights and sounds and music added in, too. So it's just a way of taking language, words, and using them to raise big questions, ideas, and issues, generally leaving it up to the audience to decide how they feel about it, or try to answer some of the questions for themselves.
-The arts are heavily subsidized. The National Theater of Great Britain is completely subsidized. Students study drama in public school starting Day 1, and have a play reading list that they must complete in order to pass their examinations.
-Two of Clum's metaphors: 1) Theater is like a church. People come together in a space to share an experience about larger questions and connect to greater ideas. 2) Theater is like a courtroom, where the audience acts as the jury, judging and evaluating the characters, see their talents and where they have failed, etc.
-Revivals bring the present and the past together. It's a new version of old words, and actors have to figure out why they are reviving this in order to give it new meaning. Clum says: "Treat a new play like it's a classic, and treat a classic like it's a new play."
-"A script is not a play, it's a blueprint." Plays are meant to be seen and heard. Not read.
-Generally, plays are the last chapter of a really long story. You find out parts of the story through exposition told by the characters. Take any play, and think about it.
-Theater is just overall much easier to do here. People can turn a profit with a show in three weeks. In NY, actors couldn't do that in under a year because of labor union rules, etc. For instance, Orchestra unions have a rule that a certain size orchestra is necessary for a certain size theater. For instance, Mamma Mia! is/was in a theater that by the rules needed a 20 person orchestra, Mamma Mia! only needs 9 musical parts, but they are still paying 11 other parts because they have to.
After class, Clum took us on a double-decker bus to initiate our travels throughout the city. Here is a view of a London street from the top of the bus:
After class, Clum took us on a double-decker bus to initiate our travels throughout the city. Here is a view of a London street from the top of the bus:
Our first marvelous siting: the Royal Opera House. Unfortunately, we won't be seeing any shows here, as it is incredibly difficult to get tickets (and they are very expensive). In addition to seeing the best opera in the world, this building also houses other entertainers of similar caliber, such as the best ballet dancing in the world.
This is the entrance to the National Gallery of Art. We saw some beautiful and historic paintings inside. We didn't spend too much time, however, as we were on our way to dinner.
Here is Saint Martin's church:
A neat view of the London skyline and the Thames River:
I'm sure all of you know what this famous clock is called!
Here is the London Eye. Clum explained that it is a 45 minute ride (for a full rotation) that grants the best view of the city. At the top, viewers can see up to 10 miles away. The Eye is 150m (443 ft) in height, and costs 17 pounds (about $28) to ride.
Group shot in the park! I have requested that everyone in the group send me a bio, so hopefully by next post you all will know who everyone is, including a little bit about them.
Pictures of a free flyer for A Little Night Music. Note that this is not the official program, which costs 3 pounds and is quite detailed.
And without further ado, I give you Becca Stone's excellent writing on the show:
The show was in Garrick Theatre (built in the 1880s, reflecting class structure, rich on first balcony, middle class in "the stalls" [best seats by today's standards, and where we sat], and 2nd and 3rd balconies. Very ornate and very old. Europe likes carving naked ladies.
The show itself is a the 4th revival in London of a 1973 musical. It's based on a movie called Smiles of a Summer Night, which is a classical farce (pretty much like the musical, plot-wise, too), that takes place in Sweden at the turn of the century. It possesses stock characters and situations like a old man that marries a teenage, naive girl, a vain soldier acting icy and stiff, a maid who seems to always be aware of everything, but also is the typical...as Clum called it, "sexually alert," a stern young man confused about the world and life and love, a woman dealing with a cheating husband (the soldier), and an actress who is adored by...everyone (by 'everyone,' I mean men, and by 'adored,' I mean slightly more...desire). Sounds simple, truthfully. But the story handles all issues that come up in life because of such relationships in a very connective, dream-like way, which Sondheim contributed to beautifully with breathtaking musical melodies and poignant lyrics that show up again repetitively, but with newer, different meanings each time. And the director of this revival, Trevor Nunn, was wicked awesome in the way he created the picture on stage, the blocking/movement, the lighting, everything. The show itself was a comedy, but the lighting and setting was rather dark and mysterious, while being lightened up by the dresses of characters Anne (Jessie Buckley), and Fredrika (Katie Buckhholz). and everyone when they were "in the country".
So there you have it for day 1! I can't say when today's events will be posted, but I hope soon.
Until then,
Cheers from the cast of Duke in London!
So there you have it for day 1! I can't say when today's events will be posted, but I hope soon.
Until then,
Cheers from the cast of Duke in London!
