Peter Pan

I was kind of shocked by the play, it followed the book very well, but it did not really follow the Disney movie. There was a lot of technology used in this play, most obviously the flying system used for Peter, Wendy, John, and Micheal. I was disappointed that that the flying was only side to side, I thought it would be different. The lighting in Peter Pan was crucial for many reasons. The character Tinkerbell was entirely represented by light.

Lighting

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stage_lighting
To me, lighting is the most important technical facet of a production. Without it, we would be singing and acting in the dark. Lighting does a lot to contribute to a play, but I never knew that it could actually impact the audiences perception of what was going on. Say there was a scene that involved a fight; if its in soft lighting, it may seem out of place or weird. If there is a red light or a bit harsher lighting, the scene will appear more cohesive.

Tech Day

I loved set construction today. I tried to lift heavy stuff, but I'm not very strong so Andrew helped me a lot, thank you! It was really neat to see how the ropes work because I never really understood what was going on up there.... I always feared something falling on my head. I think the set will add another dimension to Mulan. Without a set, the play wouldn't be a play so much as just us on a stage acting, dancing, and singing. With the set we have a purpose and more obvious ideas.

STOMP!

I really enjoyed STOMP, it was awesome. I thought it was very interesting to see how they took common household objects, make noise with them, and turn that noise into music. Meeting the cast afterward was a good opportunity to learn how about improvisation, no show is ever the exact same because characters are always a little different. I think that some aspects could relate to Mulan, like always stay in character and don't be afraid to go outside of your comfort zone. The cast also discussed auditions, which we had mentioned as an area of interest.

Greek theater

http://www.ancientgreece.com/s/Theatre/
Greek theater was like kabuki theater in their overdone make-up and masks. In the Greek theater, actors had to wear masks so that people could see their facial expressions more clearly. Kabuki actors had over-done makeup so that their faces were more obviously. Both theaters had to have men play women. Kabuki included women originally, but then they were banned. Greek theater never included women.

Kabuki

http://www.asianartmall.com/kabukiarticle.htm
I thought it was interesting to see what exactly kabuki means. Ka- means songs, which represents the musical aspect of this form of the theater. Bu- means dance, as in the large amounts of dancing performed. Ki- means skill, because singing and dancing requires skill to be done right. i thought kabuki would be very solemn and serious, but instead it has lots of drumming and dancing with make-up and dramatics.

Week 1 Day 3

my source is http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art29756.asp

I realized exactly how much Mulan must have sacrificed to join the army. The source says that the war lasted for ten years. For anyone to fight for ten ears, their country would honor them and be proud. Not to degrade the other warriors, but Mulan served for ten years while concealing her true identity and concealing a secret from everyone around her. I can't believe the struggles Mulan must have had to face.