Reflection On Chains On Chocolate

The technical aspects of the production such as scenery, properties and costumes also played a keynote in the productions success. The scenery was fabulous it truly made the play. It was very realistic and extremely vibrant. Almost the entire play was performed in one setting, except for the railcar and dance scenes. The house, the main setting, was magnificent with painstakingly placed detail in every corner. All elements in the house matched wonderfully, for example the furniture, the photos on the wall, the telephone and even the trash can. Little bits of detail were everywhere adding to the beautification of the set, for example the lace decorations on the chairs, the etched glass above the front door and even the Christmas tree.

This is a must watch Broadway show that makes your fine, terrible, or even boring day, an absolute blast. The Play That Goes Wrong has finally made its way to America and right at the heart of New York City near Times Square at the Lyceum Theatre. Therefore, the experience is a win-win situation for the audience. The Lyceum Theatre’s architecture is astonishing as it is filled with ornaments, I also realized the letter ‘L’ around the theater, but the most interesting fact is that it is a landmark. It has a proscenium stage while the audience is in the orchestra, balcony, or the mezzanine seats, like where I sat, and there is barely any space if you are a tall person. My seat was near the far end of mezzanine, I couldn’t see a part of the left side of the stage, so I found myself bending sideways to see what was going on, but I saw nothing. I found the side stage lights and a side balcony blocking my view and yet I had a great time.

Once seated, we saw that the stage was mainly bare with a chair on the left hand side of the stage. This suggested to the audience that the play would be non-naturalistic unlike, a west end theatre production.

Our seats were located in the middle of the theatre on the edge of the balcony in front of the stage. Botti created an intimate atmosphere as he related the show to a Valentine's Day theme. The velvety sound of Botti's trumpet flowed into the air when

The performance hall was designed in a thrust manner, which from a frontal view of the stage, I sat on the left hand side. This designed allowed for an unorthodox relationship between the actor and the audience. The actors would commonly come off the stage and run around the hall, lacing the rows. While running around, they would sometimes sing to one individual or extend their hand for

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

actually address the historical legacy of slavery, Lin Manuel Miranda’s casting brought light to the misrepresentation of non-whites in media and history. Throughout history, minority races, specifically African-Americans and Hispanics, are often whitewashed into stereotypical themes; thug life, segregation, or the “bad guy”.

As we dressed for the show, my thoughts were flooded with images and ideas. We descended the hotel stairs, hailed a taxi, and arrived at the theatre; while I remained in a pleasant daze. My first impression of the Nederlander met and exceeded all my expectations. I had envisioned an old theater, forgotten by the Broadway elite. As we walked to the door, we were able to see the wall signed by the cast and photos of the premier. The theater itself had a rundown feel to it and left you with the distinct impression that the magic was within the walls and on stage. As we entered the doors, I soaked in every thing. Our seats were located in the center, orchestra section, which gave us a perfect view of all the action.

Before the performance begun, there was a couch positioned on the center of the stage. Behind the couch, a rectangular entrance was opened revealing a hallway where the actors entered. Falsettos, had changeable scenes that constantly used the rectangular entrance. It easily drawn the audiences’ attention when the actor entered because the lighting drenched the entrance, cueing the actors to enter. The vacant couch placed before the performance began could be distorted into chairs, short end tables, and a love seat. One scene I remembered that distorted the couch apart into an assortment of furniture was Marvin’s visit at the psychologist’s office. Before the scene was cued, the couch was distorted into a love seat, and a chair. These props conveniently made it a less hassle changing furniture pieces. Also, the back wall had photo images of framed pictures and books that were projected to make the set livable.

The film mocks the ways that white students adopt black language and culture, makes fun of the ways that whites use black culture to be “cool,” and shows how they fumble in performing it.  But it is not only the white students who are the butt of jokes in the film. Semien takes stock black characters and uses them to humorous effect: the overzealous black activist (Sam), the black girl with blue contacts (Coco), the black man dating a white woman (Troy), and even the black gay guy (Lionel) who “listens to Mumford and Sons and watches Robert Altman,”1 arguably too white in his cultural tastes to fit in at Armstrong-Parker, the black student house. Taking cues from Spike Lee, the writer-director critiques the structural racism that exists in the American university, highlighting the absurdity of everyday life as a “black face in a white

The black box let you focus on the details of the stage and action going on. Also with the stage not being too big and the scenes only take place in specific spots it let you follow the characters and see what was going on fully. It was successful with helping the audience understand what was going on in certain situations and the actors didn’t have to go too far to access props. The set looked to be mostly wooden and had an old timey appearance. Paired with the props the whole thing came together quite nicely because the props looked

In the words of Gay McAuley, “for an activity to be regarded as a performance, it must involve the live presence of the performers and those witnessing it…” (McAuley, 2009, cited in Schechner, 2013, pp.38). This statement recognises the importance of both the actor and the audience for something to truly function as a performance. In addition, Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones highlights the significance of the theatrical space and how it can influence an audience stating that “on entering a theatre of any kind, a spectator walks into a specific space, one that is designed to produce a certain reaction or series of responses” (Llewellyn-Jones, 2002, pp.3). The relationship between actor, audience and theatrical space is no less important today than it was at the time of theatre during the Spanish Golden Age and the creation of Commedia dell’arte in Italy. Despite being very close geographically with theatre thriving for both in the same era, sources that explore the social, cultural and historical context of these countries and the theatre styles will bring to light the similarities and differences. This essay will analyse the staging, the behaviour of the audience as well as the challenges the actors faced, and how this directly influenced the relationship between actor, audience and theatrical space.

One expects when walking past the doors of a theatre to encounter a stage and perhaps someplace to sit. However, when walking through the theatre doors one is confronted by a fabric wall and a dark hallway created by hanging pieces of yellow curtains and blankets stitched together with visible seams and patterns overlapping haphazardly. The people you saw enter before you disappear and you’re confronted by the question of where to go next. You walk along the dark makeshift hallway until you find an open wooden door, through which you finally see the stage and realize that you were only a few feet away from it the entire time. This makes up the audience’s first interaction with the The Yellow Wallpaper.

After reading the Read section, of this week’s assignment there are a couple of tips I plan to apply, in Complete and Discuss this week. One tip I find helpful, pretty regularly, is collaboration (Bethel University, 2013). My husband and I are taking the same courses, so I’m always bouncing ideas off of him, or asking him if my answers sound “too wordy”, or unintelligent, and vice versa. It helps to have a second opinion, or to just hear yourself say something aloud. Plus, they may say something, that sparks a whole chain reaction of ideas in your head, that can be useful in your work.

The black box theater was set up to look like the protagonist Sister Aloysius’ office within the Catholic school where she was a principle. The room had one wooden desk, two chairs, a tea set on the side, an old telephone, and a door that allowed the actors to be seen clearly on the elevated stage platform. Behind the office was what seemed to be a hallway but was strategically see through which allowed the cast members to listen and partake in Father Flynn’s sermon. That was a very creative decision on the director’s behalf because I was so focused on Father Flynn and his sermon but once he said, “In the name of the Father, Son, and the Holy Ghost, Amen” and in the corner of my eye, I saw something move behind him. When I realized the other actors were doing the sign of the cross behind the see-through wall, I thought that it was such a unique way to incorporate the cast with Flynn’s sermons. Next to Sister Aloysius’ office was a doorway to the courtyard that separated the school from the rectory.