'Seussical' for inspiration

As I will be assistant-directing Seussical at my university next semester, going to see this limited-run production of the show was an ample opportunity to gather some ideas for the visuals and observe how the professionals have brought the characters to life.

Seussical at the Arts Theatre
Performance: Sunday 29th December 2013
Seat: Circle right
Music: Stephen Flaherty
Lyrics: Lynn Ahrens
Director: Kirk Jameson
Cast included: Ste Clough (Horton the Elephant), Elliot Fitzpatrick (Cat in the Hat), Jordan Veloso (JoJo), Kirsty Marie Ayers (Gertrude), Jessica Parker (Mayzie)

Brief plot summary
Horton the Elephant hears the cries of the Whos, a race so small that it is invisible to the naked eye, from a clover. He takes it up as his duty to guard the clover. JoJo, a Who child, gets into trouble for thinking too much and he bonds with Horton, because he, too, has 'thinks'. Meanwhile, Gertrude is trying to impress Horton but feels she is not succeeding because of her virtually non-existent tail and asks Mayzie for help.

The cast of Seussical.

The plot summary suggests a slightly nonsensical children's show. The musical is based on the stories of Dr. Seuss so that offers one explanation. A lot of the spoken dialogue has been left in verse form as per the original books. I think Seussical falls into the same category with shows like Honk in which adults run around the stage in costume, pretending to be animals and therefore just hearing about the show it may be difficult to take it seriously. This particular version was a shorter, one-act version of the original as it was aimed at children. However, it was brilliant fun to watch for someone my age also and I think the longer version, which we will be performing at university, has a lot of potential to appeal to a slightly older audience.

I was surprised to find that Ste Clough, who has taught me dance workshops, was playing the main character. I had a brief chat with him afterwards and, incredibly, he did remember me! I haven't seen him on stage before so it was a fun experience. He did a good job of the mellow Horton.
I was amazed at the extent to which Mayzie had been made stripper-like considering the target audience of the show, but this polarisation was perhaps seen as essential in order to establish the opposing personalities of Mayzie and Gertrude, who, in turn, was presented as shy and geeky, wearing dull clothes. Mayzie was dressed in bright red. Even though the set was simple and the actors were not wearing animal outfits, colours had been used effectively throughout in compensation and the show was a great example of how obvious colour choices can take you far in conveying a message.

This was my first time visiting the Arts Theatre and I fell in love with its intimate atmosphere. When I got round to booking my ticket, there weren't many left and I did not get much choice with my seat so I did not expect much in terms of the view but it was absolutely fine. I should think that almost every seat in the auditorium grants a great view. The small size of the theatre made it essential that the cast be small. It consisted of 12 members in total with supporting characters doubling up but with the smoothness of the costume changes there may as well have been half a dozen more actors. The ensemble work was great.

(Source)

Overall I enjoyed the show but I think understanding the story and the characters fully would have been very difficult for someone not familiar with it at all beforehand. I overheard one lady in conversation in the foyer after the show saying that she and her children were very familiar with the stories of Dr Seuss and for them the show had made perfect sense. This was in response to another lady who had been left slightly confused by the whole thing having not read any of the original books. A day in the library reading through all of the Dr Seuss books will be my next stop in preparation for our own production.

Review of 2013

There are lots of these around this time of the year so I thought I would make one as well. 

• January: I played the title role in an amateur pantomime, Little Bo-Peep.
• March: I joined the same drama group in their next production. Rehearsals began for an original play set in the Second World War, Violette - The Fight for Freedom in which I was double-cast as a French resistance worker and a concentration camp prisoner.
• April: I found out my University of Chichester audition had been successful and I was offered a place on BA Music with Musical Theatre.
• May: I performed in a musical theatre showcase at the Questors Theatre in West London as a part of my musical theatre foundation course. I also acted as an assistant stage manager for a production of Honk Jr..
• I passed my motorcycle theory test.
• June: I attended my step-sister's wedding in Finland.
• Performances of Violette took place. 
• July: I took the Associate Trinity College London Performance Diploma in Musical Theatre exam.
• I got a sports massage for the first time in my life. 
• I cooked dinner at my house for 9 of my friends plus myself. That is more people than I have ever had to cook for.  
• August: I spent two weeks in Finland visiting friends and relatives. I also attended the annual summer meet-up of the Finnish Wicked fanclub while there.
• September: I moved to Chichester and started university. I also got a branch transfer at work so I could keep my Saturday job while at university.
• I visited a friend who was working on the Isle of Wight. I had never been there before.
• October: I participated in another, shorter performance of Violette at the Spelthorne and Runnymede Drama Festival. This time I was allocated a different part. 
• November: I passed the second part of the motorcycle practical and gained an A2 motorcycle licence. 
• I got a trombone. 
• December: I sung in two different university concerts and played violin in the band for a showcase.

Looking forward to discovering what the year 2014 has in store!

My first semester at university

I realise I never finished my Soundtracker Project on here. I did listen to lots of recordings but never got round to writing about them. Oh well, I got over half way.

I thought I would update everyone on some of the the things I got involved in in my first semester. Now, overall I really enjoyed what is, believe it or not, one-sixth of my entire degree. For those who don't know, I'm studying BA Music with Musical Theatre at the University of Chichester :) The music department at the university is fantastic and although it is a big department considering the small size of the university, everyone seems to know everyone and you feel like a part of one big family if you just care to get a little involved in the activities of the department.

The compulsory part of the degree: 

• Introduction to Musical Theatre: We learned some background of the main disciplines of musical theatre as well as learning to analyse and write about the different components of the genre.
• Performance Development: Practical module with one group session (where certain people would be nominated to sing each week and everyone else would give feedback) and two half-an-hour individual singing lessons weekly. 
• Musical Grammar: Music theory.
• Introduction to the Music Industry: I chose to swap for this module because it sounded interesting and I am glad I did. We learned about the different job roles within the music industry. 

If one chose to only do the bare minimum, that would have been it. I, however, filled up my timetable with practical activities. Some of those:  

My new trombone and I.

• Dance classes: Every weekday morning 8.30-10.00. Jazz, zumba, contemporary, ballet and tap.
• Musical theatre ensemble: We rehearsed chorus numbers from musicals by Rodgers and Hammerstein and performed them with selected soloists in a small end-of-semester concert.
• First year choir: Smallish choir focusing on singing technique and sight-reading. We got to sing at Chichester Cathedral at one of their carol services with two other university choirs. 
• Pops Orchestra: The biggest orchestra at the university as anyone can take part without auditioning. The music is straight-forward so even with my lacking violin skills, I managed to keep up. This semester we played music by ABBA. 
• Training brass band: Aimed at instrumentalists who haven't played a brass instrument before but are keen to learn. For a few years now I have wanted to try out the trombone and this has been my opportunity.

There are also societies you can join which are student-lead and the meetings usually take place in the evenings or during the weekends, outside of timetabled hours. I did attend the classes organised by the dance society occasionally but I got most involved in the activities of the musical theatre society. This semester gone, the first years performed in a freshers' showcase while the rest of the students were working on a full-length production of an original musical, Dennis!. I opted to play violin in the band for the showcase instead of singing as there was a massive shortage of violins. Next semester, all society members will come together to work on Seussical the Musical which will be performed at the university in April. I am very excited to be assistant-directing the show and hopefully I will also get the opportunity to be in the ensemble. 

(Source)

MT Soundtracker: Day 23

Kismet (1953)

Original Broadway Cast Recording

Music: Alexander Borodin 
Musical adaptation and Lyrics: Robert Wright and George Forrest


Synopsis: Set in Baghdad in the times of The Arabian Nights, and based on a 1911 play by Edward Knoblock, the musical tells the story of Hajj the poet who starts off as a poor beggar but rapidly gains money and status while his daughter, Marsinah, catches the eye of the Caliph who wants to marry a foreign princess. 

Music
It seems astonishing that Kismet and Gypsy, the show I dealt with in my previous post, should be from the same decade. Having listened to both recordings, it seems like the two shows could not be much more contrasting. Where big belters are required for Gypsy, I could imagine Julie Andrews being cast in Kismet. The musical has an operatic quality to it as the music has been adapted from the work of Romantic Russian composer Alexander Borodin. Particularly the song Stranger in Paradise draws strongly upon his work featuring some of the show's most well-known musical themes. Borodin's music is described as evocative and rich in its harmonies. Though the setting of the show might suggest so, the score is not reminiscent of traditional Middle-Eastern music. Listening to the soundtrack it does come across American. 
There are many big, operatic ensemble numbers and in order to comprehend everything that is sung, you almost wish for surtitles. However, the song Gesticulate for example features a more speechy quality. It was the score that made the Kismet successful with Stranger in Paradise and Baubles, Bangles and Beads even playing on the radio. 

Productions
The original Broadway production enjoyed a successful run and won the Tony for Best Musical. Kismet did even better in London when it opened in the West End in 1955. That same year, a film version of the musical was released. 

MT Soundtracker: Day 22

Gypsy: A Musical Fable (1959)

Original Broadway Cast Recording

Music: Jule Styne
Lyrics: Stephen Sondheim


Synopsis: Based loosely on the memoirs of the striptease artist, Gypsy Rose Lee, the musical focuses on her mother, Rose, who is trying to raise her two daughters into show business; one of them a talented extrovert and the other shy, always secondary to her sister.

Music
Gypsy is one of only three musicals Stephen Sondheim has written lyrics but not the music for (the most famous one being West Side Story). I realised this was the third musical of my project composed by Jule Styne also (after Bells Are Ringing and Gentlemen Prefer Blondes). 
Two songs from Gypsy, Let Me Entertain You (which is a reoccurring musical theme in the show and is effectively used to enhance the sense of character development) and Together Wherever We Go were familiar to me from the pantomime I took part in in January. They are catchy tunes as well as Some People. Rose's Turn is also a famous track. Because of the show business centered plot line, many of the songs are "big" and one can imagine them as stereotypical stagey numbers. The main part of Rose in particular is highly demanding due to the heavily belt-orientated songs. Like the two other Jule Styne musicals I have already explored, this one also contains some great female solos. 

Productions
Since the original Broadway production, there have been four revivals of Gypsy on Broadway alone. The part of Rose has been played by several notable actresses; this particular recording features Ethel Merman in the role. In the original West End production in 1973, Rose was played by Angela Lansbury and she won a Tony for her portrayal. 
A successful film version of Gypsy was made in 1962 and another one, for television, was released in 1993.

MT Soundtracker: Day 21

Guys and Dolls (1950)

New Broadway Cast recording (1992)

Music & Lyrics: Frank Loesser

Synopsis: The musical is set among the world of the New York gangsters. Nathan Detroit, desperate for money, bets Sky Masterson that he can't get a Salvation Army girl, Sarah Brown, to go with him to Cuba while Nathan himself struggles in his long-term relationship to Adelaide who wants to get married. 

Music

I found most of the soundtrack fairly unforgettable which I was surprised over knowing how well-known Guys and Dolls is. The score is true to its time in terms of style and reminded me of Kiss Me, Kate. 

My favourite song of the soundtrack by far was the love duet, I've Never Been in Love Before. I knew I had heard this song before but I had been unaware of its musical of origin. In fact, there were a few songs I recognised such as Luck Be a Lady and Sit Down, You're Rocking the Boat. Adelaide's Lament is the infamous one which apparently you should never sing in an audition as trying to sound like you have a cold is rarely useful. 

Productions

The original Broadway production which opened in 1950, did brilliantly well and won five Tony Awards including Best Musical. The first West End production opened in 1953. Guys and Dolls has since been revived several times in various formats, particularly in New York. Presumably due to the variety of characters and the many ensemble opportunities, the musical has become popular among schools and amateur groups.

A UK revival is being planned for the 2014 season at the Chichester Festival Theatre, which I will fairly certainly go and see. I get the impression from the number of professionals productions that have taken place that Guys and Dolls is one of those classic shows every musical theatre enthusiast should have seen at least once. 

MT Soundtracker: Day 20

Whistle Down the Wind (1996)

Original Cast Recording (1998)

Music: Andrew Lloyd Webber
Lyrics: Jim Steinman

Synopsis: Based on the 1961 film of the same name, the musical is set in Louisiana in 1959. Swallow finds an unknown man hiding in the barn and believing him as he says he is Jesus Christ, she and the other children promise to keep his existence secret while the adults search for a murderer on the run.  

Music
Like most Andrew Lloyd Webber scores, Whistle Down the Wind has one very distinct motif which keeps returning for continuity and coherence. Even though the musical was unfamiliar to me, I still knew that 'Whistle Down the Wind' tune. However, even for Lloyd Webber, this tune was recycled a lot and I was tired of it before I was even halfway through the soundtrack. 
Many of the songs are very melodic and are reminiscent of older musical theatre shows by the likes of Rodgers and Hammerstein. Like in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, children are an integral part of the show. A few of the songs are rock-influenced such as Cold and Tire Tracks and Broken Hearts. 
Interesting fact: No Matter What, sung by Boyzone on the concept album and later released by them as a single, was voted UK's single of the year in 1998 and it became the most successful single produced from a musical ever. 
Also A Kiss Is a Terrible Thing to Waste and When Children Rule the World became well-known tracks outside of the context of the show. 

Productions
Due to the negative reviews following its Washington D. C. premiere in 1996, the date set for a Broadway opening of Whistle Down the Wind was cancelled. A reworked version of the musical opened in the West End in 1998 and this production ran for over 1000 performances. It has since been revived in the West End and it has successfully toured both in the UK and the USA.