Dayandra Leao: Play Review

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

Their costumes were amazing very realistic and funny, again love their creativity, especially how they added little bits of modern comedy and the narration was great. When the audience had the break and coming back in their setup was still great everything was perfect nothing falling or hanging off. As well as the switching of lights in the beginning middle and end it was beautiful and smooth.

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

They followed the steps on how to get an audience attention when telling a story or doing a presentation. First, they told us what they are going to do which was to kill the king, and how they are going to do it, and lastly why they did it. One thing I found really successful was even though the play was really comical the actors were able to keep the storyline in a way that I could understand. The show kept me on edge, it kept me wondering what craziness is going to happen next. Although the show was really comical it also had a lot of life lessons that I learned. Firstly, one thing I learned from watching the performance is that” Once a traitor always a traitor.” In the show, there was a guy that plotted a coup with a soldier so they could overthrow the king so that soldier “ “captain Bondure” could take over. In the end, the traitor ended up betraying the soldier and stole the crown. The second thing I learned from this performance is never let anything bring you down no matter what the circumstances are. In the case of Ubu Roi, the princess lost her dad. Then her mom died right in her hands while they were on the run hiding in a cage. She never gave up on her idea to revenge her families’ death.

My favorite character was the ballet teacher. The actress made great use of the stage and her props. I loved the way she swayed in her fur lined silk robe and how she used her faux cigarette. It really conveyed the life story of the character and made her stand out. It gives her an aura of strength but also a certain feeling of tragedy — as if she had always wanted to become a star. Her beat changes were very distinct throughout the play. Each line was

I will be honest with you I had a lot of trouble enjoying the play, like I said the dialect gave me trouble, plus my seats were not that great. I did however like the movie quite a bit, but I realize I am a product of a different generation as well. I have been brought up around TV and movies rather than plays

As I have seen some performances prior to this one, my expectations are kind of not that high. As the play was prepared and performed by a team of theater students, I just expected there will be basic elements a play should have. I also did expect some extraordinary performances from the main actors because I got that every time I attended the plays on campus. LMU actors and actresses / theater-majors tended to surprise me every single time I attended their plays. I know they will eventually act for a living but the fact that they could memorize pages of script, successfully get into character and act all at the same time still baffled me very much.

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

I was particularly struck by the acting of Gracie Sartin. Her fearless approach to so many elements of the play – whether it was being hit on the head with an ironing board, hitting another costar with the ironing board, or giving one of her characters (Villian) an accent - was incredibly interesting to watch. Despite the fact that she portrayed six different people, she embodied them so well that I did not see Gracie in them. I saw only the characters she was portraying. The other actors were also successful in that ability. I think that achievement, combined with the success of the way the time constraints were embraced, added greatly to the success of the play.

Seeing the performance live was great. There were many different aspects that would not have been seen if the play was read. Something unique about the performance was the stage directions and Acts/scenes being set up by the characters. Also, the characters were introduced by other characters. This aspect was a great addition to the performance, the audience was introduced to what was going on rather than jumping into the performance. The Diner was spectacular and very detailed, it brought to life the set. The cast only consisted of one woman, similar to August Wilson play Fences. This is interesting because there are many different perspectives of African American men, but only one perspective of the African American woman. This can hinder

My second favorite character was Julia, Chairwoman of the Cleveland Opera Guild. When she enters in Act II, she is on her way to the show and is wearing a very shiny, extravagant dress. I think that the dress was a bit too much for the occasion. When Saunders sees her, he makes a joke about her dress. The funny part is the way the dress looks. It is not a very pretty dress and it does her no justice, but she thinks that she looks really

The reaction toward the play, I think the play was little bit tedious, since there is only one setting of scene that is take place and presented in the play, a new house of new couple. In addition, the play is lack of sound effects, so that some of the audiences felt sleepy when watching the play. However I like the actress who played a Hedda, she is multitalented actress. She showed

The actors and actresses did well in their assigned rolls and I wish I could congratulate them on finishing the run. They worked together very well in all of the group musical numbers regardless of how hard they can be to coordinate at times. If I had to rate this performance of the musical it would get a 9/10. The acting, singing, costumes and costume changes, scenery and of course, the plot, are all wonderful and this is a must see. The only thing lacking was the cues and lighting, the use of the gobos was lacking and there was not as much color change as I would have enjoyed

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.

The play was so well done, and the opening section was somewhat grand considering the fact that actors and actresses played their part and portrayed the characters in a way I could really relate to. I have always like live performances, and one thing the producer of Les Miserables introduced was the orchestra switch their voices between prerecorded and live scenes, this gave the play a sense of immediacy and power.