A Review Of John Cariani's Play Almost, Maine Play

I liked how they took a hot boring day, and turned it into a fun celebration with happiness and music. It shows that anything is possible when you put your heart to it. My favorite song is “96,000.” I was surprised that Abuela had the winning ticket and everyone’s hype over the money made me excited as well. I also liked the attribute to Abuela when she passed away. It moved me to be emotional and felt as if I lost Abuela too. The memories shared about her showed the impact she made in everyone’s life. It made me feel like I knew her as much as the character’s did. The dark scene and the candles were perfect for this

Each element gave the stage a different feel that matched every scene , complementing each brilliantly. The only element that lacked for me was lights, although very bright ; in my opinion the reoccurring blue wasn't the best option. I feel if the lighting designer would have had more warmer colored lights against the already vibrant set pieces, it would have made the stage pop more. But one thing i did particularly fancy, were the costumes the characters wore and how they fit each character. Each character's’ costume showed the dichotomy between the personalities and tastes of each individual. For example Ilona played by Jane Krakowski was dressed in a scarlet / pinkish dress with a high slit up the left side; showing her seductive character type. Meaning when i saw Ilona on stage, I immediately knew who i was looking at . Lastly the sound effects included , like the door jingle sound or The bike bell , added to the whole idea of being inside and outside of a retail building. These effects gave the stage an outdoorsy feel , drawing you in , giving the audience illusions of really being in 1930’s

The most successful aspect of the performance for me were the scene changes. I found that the rotation of the blackboard, center stage, where the actors were able to stoop beneath it in order to enter and exit the stage, was an effective touch to this

The play was very well done and was not dull even though it was catered to a large audience. The musical numbers are very entertaining, and the spectacle, both visual and emotional, is well accomplished. I would recommend this to most children and adults, due to the Christmas themes and general lightheartedness of the play.

In Summary, with these three examples it is shown that the play and the movie contrast quite a bit. Most of the story line and the dialogue were very similar to the original story in the movie but some things were changed, possibly to shorten the story to be able to make

And the picture of you that was out front with all the casting actors, wow you looked gorgeous! Once again I was extremely impressed by the stage design. The back Catholic Church wall was such an amazing structure. The paint and texture that was used to build the wall, gave off the appearance of a real stone wall. The wall design was flawless, and the size and scale it in which it was done in is astounding! Ms. Livingstone office was also well placed; it kept a focus point to the center of the room. The decision to go with a see through glass desk and small offices chairs allow the stage space to seem larger and didn’t block or hide when the actors sat down or walked around the desk. The area with the steps that lead to Mother Ruth desk was also well crafted, but I felt it was not utilized enough. It was barley used and wasn’t sure if it was Mother Ruth office or apart of the church altar. The church pew was a nice addition as well. I was also really impressed with the lighting effects, especially from the church windows. I first thought the stained glassed windows were fixed lights that couldn’t be changed, but once Livingstone took center stage and began to speak the colors changed to a red color (I think). When that happened it felt like the world froze in place while she spoke, and resuming when the light turned back to a bright morning light. I also liked how the lights would change throughout the play to set a different mood. For example, when Ms. Livingstone was hypnotizing Agnes, she told Agnes to imagine herself being in water all of the sudden the room color was

He really made the audience believe that he was truly in love with Evalina through his expressions and the way he acted around her. I could see in the way he looked at the actress who played Evalina that he admired her and her presence. The actor who played Spunk had a very good singing voice and guitar skills. I really enjoyed watching him act as he was using his real life talents throughout the play. I did believe the characters to an extent. The dialogue was very realistic, but the way some characters delivered their lines was not adequate. On a scale of one to ten, the rating I would give the cast is an 8. The voices and overall acting was a lot better than I expected coming into the play. I cared a lot about what happened to the characters. When Spunk was fighting against Jim Bishop I did not want him to get hurt. When he came out with a wound I felt bad for him. I could also see the fear in Evalina’s eyes when she saw Spunk. The ending made me happy because I wanted Spunk and Evalina to be together and really cared for them. The choreography was blocked very well. The dances were very in sync and the positioning of the actors was successful. There was a lot of time in between scene changes and the directing did a good job of filling this time gap. When the narrator, Zora, came on stage, the actors were good at freezing in place while she spoke. I could tell that several hours and

Film scenes don’t make itself come to life; this specific job is designated to the art director. The art director is Kelvin Humenny and this man help collaborate with the director and production designer to produce the overall look and feel of Elf (2003). Humenny delegated tasks to production, set, electrical and lighting designers, unifying those roles in the effort to bring directors aesthetic vision to life. Again, this is a Christmas movie and the set up is suppose to make the audience feel the Christmas spirit. This scene was a success in my eyes. The set and lighting was spot on as you look at the details of the scene, all you can notice is Christmas decorations and lights. The lighting itself wasn’t overwhelming but just right and what people expect for Christmas decorations.

The scenic design in this play was extraordinary, and I could tell there was a lot of effort put into it. In this play there was a stairway towards the back of the stage. It brought in a new way for the actors to enter/exit the stage. I thought this was very creative idea that was easy to move on, and off stage if needed. There were many scenes that had the moon and the stars in the background. I loved this because it showed the audience when it was night time. I also love looking at the moon and the stars, I feel it creates a very romantic atmosphere. There were times the setting was inside a house or a pub, and then there were times that the setting was outside like the war scene, and the balcony scene. I

Using certain shapes of materials and color helped the audience understand the scenery of the play, being able to understand what time period this took place. The lighting through the play was great, being able to clearly see in detail for each scene. For example, when the Stage manager introduces the people in Grover's Corner, is was clear and easy to see what type of life style they live. Grisel Torres did an excellent job with the angles, colors, and shadows throughout the play, really emphasizing the emotion and lighting for each scene. Allison Mortimer, the costume designer, did a good job figuring out what each character should wear and allowing the audience to decide which class each character fits in society. The costumes looked like they were somewhat middle class and even looked vintage at times. I wasn't sure if they were recreated or not. Changing costumes for different scenes made it easier to understand the aspect of the scene and allowing the audience to understand what will happen.

The Play of Sweet town is set in a small country town in the mid-1960s, Sweetown explores Australia’s uneasy relationship with the darker aspects of our national history. It deals with themes of, Australian history, memories, change, denial, reconciliation, identity, guilt. The writer Melissa Reeve’s purpose for its creation was to bring to attention and satirise the history that happened and was forgotten many years ago. The set is minimalistic, sparse and Non-realistic, with open space in the middle to reflect the outback and the use of some 1960s set pieces such as chairs to indicate the era. The style of the play is a satire, which is a form of comedy that can also be found at the heart of more serious drama. Its

In act one they start the act on an open stage no props and curtain less. The stage manager enters the story and introduces the play. He tells us the setting the town of Grover’s Corners, “New Hampshire, just before dawn on May 7, 1901”. He describes landmarks, churches, schools, and other important places. This tells us that their home town is small but a big part of their lives.

Visual components were very important in this play, just like any other play. Upon coming into the theatre, the stage was lit with a soft blue light, and a single red light towards upstage. The trees were crafted very beautifully and positioned all across the stage. The snow which had covered the stage floor, and continued to fall down was a very nice added effect and gave the set a beautiful winter look. I liked the fact that the snow was heavy on the stage, but not too heavy. I say this meaning that it was layered on the stage so that you could not see the stage underneath.

I think that the performer’s ability was appropriate for their location and for their audience because the tone quality of the musicians sounded very rich and clean. When I listened to the performance, I was able to hear all of the different parts of the piece clearly, which has made me much more conscious of the balance and dynamics of each phrase when I play. The texture of the pieces played was very rich and full because an orchestral piece is designed to have a good balance of instruments and good range of frequencies of sound that has lots of different things happening at the same time.

Throughout the play, I enjoyed the role of music used to set a comic atmosphere and replace the dialogs during comic scenes (e.g. when they chase each other around). I also thought that they made a good use of light to indicate the moment of the day the scene was happening or to set the atmosphere of the scene (e.g. pink colour during the romantic moments). Lastly, I liked the way the play ended. Even though it was a little messy with everyone running after each other off and on stage, and this policeman coming out of nowhere, which really surprised me; I couldn’t think of a better way to end the play.