Rent - Musical

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.

At the end of World War I, an excited America was poised for a cultural renaissance; patriotism was on the rise, the strong concept of Manifest Destiny had passed its peak of influence, and, most importantly, there had not been a clear shift in culture for decades. The Jazz Age of the 1920s was about to dawn, bringing with it youthful, risqué morals and a carefree look on life. From these ideals, a new, strongly American form of entertainment would emerge: musical theatre. Most commonly found in New York City on Broadway even to this day, musical theatre became an escape from reality and an entry into the imagination. The grand and splashy components that make up what is considered a classic Broadway musical can ultimately be traced back to Cole Porter. Porter’s writing, albeit at times controversial or raunchy, was able to harness the frantically beating heart of the Jazz Age and turn it into treasured shows. Using his unique melodies, romantic or idealistic lyrics, and his pioneering of writing about the human experience, Cole Porter shaped American music and theatre from the 1920s through the 1940s.

In my paper I will be discussing what makes Rent such an extraordinary rock musical, the care that went into creating it, and how it was different from what came before. I will provide analysis of characters and the plot, plus I will be describing the importance and relevance of certain songs.

First of all, I decided to watch the movie Rent, which was based on Jonathan Larson’s Pulizer and his Tony award-winning musical, which has also appeared on Broadway many times. The film and musical are about a group of artists, eight friends, who are living in New York City during the HIV/AIDS epidemic. They each are dealing with different problems in their lives, such as HIV/AIDS, drug addiction, rejection, and poverty. This movie had a very tremendous impact on me, and I was very impressed with how they tied each theme into it. I was moved in a way that it has even effected the way I look at others, and overall at life.

the rest of the century. As you watch these videos notice how musicals come to represent

Newsies, a classic musical based on the late 1800’s is a very entertaining and family friendly musical-- except for the few profane words. On a cloudy, partially rainy saturday morning, I laid out on the couch and watched the movie from the comfort of my own home. I was hesitant to watch this movie because I am not much of a musical person. About midway through I found myself at the edge of my seat hypnotized by the movie. As the movie drew to an end, I was completely sucked in and waited for something more. The movie I so dreadfully did not want to watch became something I did not want to end.  In this movie the director and composer correlated their scenes and music perfectly together to touch the thoughts and emotions of the audience watching.

I attended the live performance of “Love Bomb” the musical, produced by Donna Spencer and directed by Reneé Iaci. The production was put up by the Firehall Arts Center located at 280 E Cordova St, Vancouver, BC. The central storyline of the show was as follows: A concert of emotion rips through Justine’s (played by Sara Vickruck) first performance in years, and all because of one uninvited guest, Lillian (played by Deb Pickman), her music takes on a life of its own. Lillian is a desperate mother searching for her missing daughter while Justine is hiding a secret that could kill her career. As the musical’s storyline developed further, it was clear that a sensitive topic was the underlying issue: Prostitution.

Jukebox musicals began in film and later shifted to theatre. They had begun to make theatre more popular with the public, which had begun to gravitate towards film and music. By combining the two, they gain some of the same as well as a whole new audience. I will discuss how this came to be by speaking of the shift that occurred.

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.

Kevin Williamson, a roving correspondent for the National Review magazine and theater critic for The New Criterion, attended a performance of a new cabaret-type musical named “War and Peace”, written by “Natasha, Pierre, and the Great Comet of 1812.” While Mr. Williamson was at the musical he was seated on a bench next to a woman who was impolitely using her phone throughout the musical. Mrs. Williamson asked the young woman if she would mind putting away her cell phone during the musical because it was becoming a distraction. She rudely told Mr. Williamson “So don’t look” and “to mind his own business.” After boiling with anger, Williamson took the cellphone out of her hands and threw it into some curtains. Williamson is now being called a hero for taking a stand against a disrespectful and inconsiderate audience member (Signore). Audiences are comprised of individuals gathered together at a certain time and place at a public event, such as a play, movie, concert, or meeting. As a member of an audience, each individual is expected to be respectful to the audience and the performers until after the event has concluded by arriving early, no use of electronics, and remaining silent.

The musical film has always held a special place for me. From my time as a drama student in high school, my eyes have been opened to the amazing world of the musical and especially the musical film. The musical film is a film genre in which the characters sing songs that are integrated into the overall story. Since musicals first began in theaters, musical films usually contain similar elements. These elements often simulate that there is a live audience watching. In a sense, the film viewers become the audience members, at a theater production, as the actor performs directly to them. Due to the popularity of musicals in the theater, the style was quickly brought over into film. In 1927, the musical film genre began

It also reflects on his past relationships, which like the relationship with Annie Hall, have failed.

A musical film is a genre of movie where songs sung by characters are added into the storyline, occasionally complemented by choreography. The musical numbers in these films do not always develop the plot and characters, but they do give the films a more exciting quality. The primary difference between musical theatre and film musicals is the use of extravagant scenery that would be extraordinarily unreasonable for a stage performance. While making movies, the individuals involved have the luxury of being able to shoot multiple takes and have the time to move backgrounds around or change their entire location. Stage performances, on the other hand, must have scenery that can be easily and efficiently moved on and offstage when it is needed. In order to be able to thoroughly comprehend this relatively recent- in the grand scheme of things- form of entertainment, one should understand the history behind these musical films, be aware of some of the “big names” that are well-known, and recognize major titles that revolutionized musical film forever (Scaruffi, P., 2005).

The title of the musical I watched is called Legally Blonde: The Musical. The story was based on the novel Legally Blonde by Amanda Brown and the film as well. The music and lyrics in this musical is created by Laurence O’Keefe and Nell Benjamin. This musical first premiered on January 23, 2007 at the Golden Gate Theatre in San Francisco. The musical begins with a stereotypical sorority girl named Elle Woods who is introduced as a character who is infatuated with her ex boyfriend, Warner.

The film Rent (2005) is based on the musical by the same title, which is a story about people trying to make ends meet while being directly or indirectly affected by AIDS. The title is a little misleading, because the story mainly follows the relationships between characters and the effects AIDS make on their lives, while the subplot is them struggling to pay the rent. There is one main heteronormative relationship that is followed in the film, but the other two are not. One includes a gay man, Collins, who is with a person that is inferred to be a transgender woman, Angel. The other relationship is about a bisexual woman, Maureen, who loves a lesbian named Joanne. The original musical was written by Jonathan Larson, who incorporated autobiographical aspects, such as his bisexual girlfriend who is portrayed by Maureen, who left him for another woman. Larson was inspired by the La Bohème opera, but changed the gender of Joanne’s character to be based on to a woman. Larson was known for exploring social issues in his works and illustrates topics of homophobia, addiction, and multiculturalism in Rent. The musical and film reaches out to people that are considered to be unconventional, giving the message to take pride in who you are and characteristics or qualities that are considered to be disgraceful. The different relationships are used to show there is more than just non-heteronormative relationships, providing a message that taking pride in