FOLLIES in High School???- Page 3

[lildogs]

Posted: 2/16/07 at 4:51pm

There wasn't anything to debate in the first place, ahmelie. :)

It's VERY hard for someone who's younger to think that his ideals won't change, but they will, just as surely as mine are likely to again.

Being able to imagine yourself in the world of the show, being able to communicate that to an audience, and being able to make it interesting is something that few people can do regardless of age.

I guess this offends my aesthetic because I think it's better to do something simple spectacularly than to do something difficult adequately or "it's pretty good, considering..."

That's the way I was taught in acting and voice and it's very valid--of course tackling a challenge is valid too.

Sports teams often employ this same theory--when they plan their seasons, they want SOME teams they know they can beat.

I think it's fine for students to be challenged, but the confidence that a job well done BY ANY STANDARD gives is unbeatable.

I'm trying to make sense without belittling you, I hope I did.

"You don't have to approach every concept from a place of relating it to your own life. Even something as emotionally rich or obversely banal as marriage. Besides, I kind of think a smart teenager who has watched their own parents marriage crumble and rebound a million times might be more equippped to relate to the material than someone whose biggest comparison to marriage is their dorm mate. "

Well, I don't know what "obversely banal" means, but I WAS making the point that just because he relates to FOLLIES doesn't mean that he can effectively relate that undersstanding to an audience.

And I didn't say your dorm mate--I said your bf/gf. HUGE difference. So unless you're sleeping with, cooking for, vacationing with, working with your roommate, I don't think it's a valid comparison.

[robbiej]

Posted: 2/16/07 at 4:59pm

lil,

I'm not sure why you are applying your adult, professional artistic standards to a high school musical? I mean...intent is everything isn't it? A high school musical is produced under completely different circumstances than, say, one produced by a conservatory-based college program that is preparing its students for professional careers.

[WalkOn]

Posted: 2/16/07 at 5:08pm

When I was in High School. My theatre department did a production of HAMLET... well, I KNEW I would blow them away if I was given the chance to do it. However, I knew it would go to the favorite and popular actor of the department..so I didn't bother to audition.

When people asked me why I didn't audition. I justified my fear, jealously and envy with the rationale that who would want to play Hamlet at 16? It is role that I could only tackle when I'm an adult. I shouldn't and no self-respecting actor should tackle it till much later in life.

I'm still kicking myself.

[lildogs]

Posted: 2/16/07 at 5:18pm

It's not so much that, robbie, it might sound that way...here's an example--perfect actually:

In college, I was singing "Too Many Mornings" in a group voice class--I struggled ALOT with the song, both technically and artistically--I did learn alot from that experience, but mostly what NOT to do.

2nd example: This summer, I'm working for a stock company and they do both WEST SIDE and FOREVER PLAID. Now, WSS seemed like the bigger achievement, but it wasn't the WSS that most of us would expect--solid, but greatly truncated dancing replaced by "staging." Not bad at all, but the PLAID was so much more SUCCESSFUL because they were better able to master the material.

Yes, for HS kids who are just having fun, go for it--but keep your artistic sensibilities. High standards are the best insurance to get high quality.

[ahmelie]

Posted: 2/16/07 at 5:23pm

Personally, I would rather tackle Hamlet and fail than Helena and succeed.

And I am so glad I'm at a school where I'm allowed to do that. And who's to say that I can only do Hamlet, who's to say that I can't do Helena as well? No one's told me that, I know what my limits are and I still find it satisfying to test them.

[lildogs]

Posted: 2/16/07 at 5:36pm

Obviously, I wasn't clear.

You're the kind of person who would rather do something difficult and fail than to do something more within your ability and knock it out of the park and there's nothing wrong with that.

BTW, failing at Hamlet and succeeding at Helena is kinda the same thing--both Shakespeare roles, and both young people.

I'm talking about failing at Blanche DuBois but succeeding at Emily Webb.

EDIT: I'd also like to float the suggestion that we are rarely the best judges of our own talents. I know I'm not.
Updated On: 2/16/07 at 05:36 PM

[Kringas]

Posted: 2/16/07 at 5:37pm

Are we still talking about high school theater?

[lildogs]

Posted: 2/16/07 at 5:46pm

I don't even know anymore--I'll meet you in the stall....

[ahmelie]

Posted: 2/16/07 at 5:48pm

I'm not postive where you're going with this.

Obviously, I wasn't clear.

You're the kind of person who would rather do something difficult and fail than to do something more within your ability and knock it out of the park and there's nothing wrong with that.

...So what's your point? That some people may want to knock everything out of the park? The example was that sports teams want some teams that they know they can beat, but they also want some teams that they know that they may not be able to. In no way am I saying that challenging yourself is the only way to learn! When learning people should be thrown an array of different things to really understand where they are. Some things that you take on should be easy, but I think some should be hard as well. When a 17 year old takes on Follies... what's there to lose?

And in no way am I implying that my **** doesn't stink and that I'm an amazing actress, I hope you're not getting that sense from me. If I had to do the entire play of Hamlet at this age, I probably would fail. But do think that that experience would've been imperative to my learning.

[WalkOn]

Posted: 2/16/07 at 5:58pm

I think everyone should go back to their respective corners and make their own artistic and asthetic choices guided by their own artistic and asthetic sensibilites.

Lets agree that these sensibilities are not the same for each person.

So if you are ever 17 years old again and asked to perform in High School production of FOLLIES turn it down and stick to something you think you can handle.

If you are ever offered tixs to see a High School production of FOLLIES, turn it down and wait for the for Original Production to (Clearly the only "perfect" production ever) to return to Broadway.

As for the rest of us, we will take what is offered and sometimes... as in the case of this production.. be very impressed.

[lildogs]

Posted: 2/16/07 at 6:01pm

Thre's nothing to lose...and you're right--a combination of both simple and complex projects is likely best.

And I don't think you come across that way either...

But speaking as an audience member, I'd rather see the great ODD COUPLE than the middling TEMPEST.

For me, it's not a matter of ability, but a matter of standards.

[ahmelie]

Posted: 2/16/07 at 6:05pm

Well yeah, I'd agree with you on that, but in highschool, I think musicals are looked upon as a experience for those involved in the show more than those who are watching it.

And because I wonder if we're becoming dull, WalkOn's right, and I retreat to my corner.

[SeanMartin]

Posted: 2/16/07 at 6:17pm

Because ODD COUPLE is easy and TEMPEST is hard?

Gee, why do I hear Barbie saying "Gosh, math is hard!"

Maybe we shouldnt have HS students trying to read something as complex as Dickens or the poetry of John Dunne. Certainly they shouldnt tackle music like Brahms or Mozart.

Sorry, I'd *much* prefer see them trying to exceed their artistic grasps rather than "settle".

[Plum]

Posted: 2/16/07 at 7:03pm

But speaking as an audience member, I'd rather see the great ODD COUPLE than the middling TEMPEST.

But you're not in this show's target audience. The show is meant for the local community- the fellow students and others who fundraise and organize and give their professional input for the musical theater program at the high school every single year, and for their families. Those people are proud (believe me) that their high school aims so high, and wins Rising Star awards, and lets their kids be part of something great.

I'm genuinely puzzled that you'd put a local school production in the same continuum as any kind of professional, or even professionalish, show. From Broadway down to tiny regional theaters, those places don't have the educative goals that school theater does. They're just not the same thing.

Updated On: 2/16/07 at 07:03 PM

[sidneybruhl]

Posted: 2/16/07 at 7:49pm

As someone who directs high school theatre, I often choose shows that high schools would not typically do. Our fall production was Anne Nelson's "The Guys." Though I worked with novice performers, they rose to the occasion nicely and we got many compliments on our production. For me, it's about entertaining the audience AND challenging my students. Bravo to any school that attempts a show like "Follies." This school also did productions of "Company" and "Sweet Charity."

Posted: 2/16/07 at 9:38pm

SidneyBruhl has the right idea. I've been waiting for the word "director" to crop up in this discussion. Many high-schools have or have access to great directors and that makes the difference between a high-school musical and a musical performed by high-school students.