Alright, it’s time for the second part of callbacks. This part of callbacks works very differently from the first part. In the first part, you were a body in the crowd, a voice from the chorus. The first part of callbacks was to see if you were able to add to the overall feeling of ensemble, or “togetherness” of the cast. Now is the time to see if you have what it takes to portray a specific character- exactly the way they want you to play it. Sounds hard enough, right? Well, here’s the real kicker- they aren’t going to tell you how they want the character played, so you have to guess and hope that you interpreted the inner feelings of the character correctly. The first part of “Callbacks: The Sequel” will consist of a singing portion. You were called back for a supporting lead- that means you would not be THE lead, but you would be A lead, with plenty of solos and lines. A supporting lead would be someone like Cogsworth or Mrs. Potts from Beauty and the Beast, Vivienne or Warner from Legally Blonde, or the Wizard or Glinda from Wicked. This means that during your callbacks, they will be watching for you to have good chemistry both with your fellow supporting leads as well as the leads themselves. “Chemistry” on stage means that you work very well with a person and that your relationship translates into being able to act naturally with them. You will have to sing a song, likely a duet with someone else up for a supporting lead, and then perform a few scenes with different combinations of leads and supporting leads. After singing the same song three times with different people and performing the same scene ten times with different combinations of people, you are finally done. A little more than you expected, and a little more hectic, too, don’t you think? After all, the director even had you read for the part of the lead, which you were happy to do (just not fully ready for!). But you did your best, and while your interpretation of the lead may have been different from some of the other actors up for the part, you feel confident in your performance. As crazy as it may sound, you have reached the hardest part of the entire show- the waiting. At this point there is absolutely nothing you can do to prepare, practice, or persuade the director to make a casting decision in your favor. You are completely helpless as you sit, staring at your computer screen for that email to pop up, when really you should be doing homework… after all, callbacks went until 8 pm, and you haven’t started anything due tomorrow because last night you were busy preparing for callbacks! Now it’s almost midnight, and you are still waiting for those few words that you change everything. “Congratulations, you got the part.”
Month: September 2018
Essay Draft
“Saving Students’ Lives, One Poster at a Time” The importance of education in America has long been emphasized and reiterated as demand for jobs that require higher levels of education increases. However, as safety in schools has become more of a complex issue and the frequency of school shootings has increased tenfold, education itself has taken almost a back seat when compared with the larger issue of saving the lives of children who could be at risk just by going to school. On March 14, over 1000 students stood up and walked out of class to participate in a walk out to bring awareness to the lives lost because of school shootings. Scattered among the determined, passionate, and even angry faces in that crowd are the words on the posters they hold. One such sign screamed, “We go to school to get As, not PTSD.”, and another reads “I should be writing my college essay, not my will.” In light of the shooting in Parkland just a month before, these posters dig directly into the heart of the issue at hand, addressing the audience from the perspective of sources close to the matter using tactics that ensnare the emotions of the reader. Elevated feelings of pity, shock, and determination accompany the call to action hidden in this poster behind the reliability of the speakers and the timely manner of the poster’s purpose. The PTSD poster’s purpose and initial intended reaction stems from the use of pathos in the words used and the meaning behind the words. The poster plays off of the innocent idea that the reason for kids going to school is to gain knowledge and get good grades on their report cards. The ideal report card consists of all As, so saying that a child goes to school to get As brings up the notion that the child wants to succeed, an innocent and pure goal when it comes to education. However, in the midst of that goal comes the contradictory image of having PTSD. This image is typically associated with traumatic events such as wartime tragedies or being a survivor of a horrific experience. In comparing the two, the As and the PTSD, it directly contrasts the images of a happy child that is succeeding in school and getting As with the image of an emotionally damaged child, a picture the majority of us can sympathize with. We feel bad for this fictional child and the horrors they have had to endure because we see the consequences of school shootings, such as PTSD instead of the prized As. While this poster play on the idea that a child can be emotionally scarred from such an event, other posters take the message a step further, bringing in the physical well being of the child in question, as well. One such poster that elaborates on the expectation of what a typical high school student should be doing versus the reality of what could be happening, also using pathos to pull the audience’s emotions into the equation. This alternative poster compares college essay writing to writing a will. Writing a college essay is an event that is one of the first steps a student can take towards their future, starting the path towards college and the rest of their lives. The writing of a will, on the other hand, is an action associated with the end of a life, and symbolizes the lack of a future. This creates feelings of sorrow within the audience as they realize the stark difference in outcome based on a horrific event that is a very real possibility in many educational settings. This poster even goes as far as to say that a child’s life could be in jeopardy, not just the emotional well being of the child. All parents or adults who have taken on a role that comes with some level of responsibility for a child understands how devastating such an occurrence would be. Beyond just those people, the rest of the country can understand how the loss of a life is beyond unacceptable, especially when that life is an innocent child with what could be their whole life ahead of them. While both of these posters effectively make use of the pathos in the emotional ideas and concepts presented in their words, they employ slightly different level of shock and pity for the authors of the posters. The aforementioned authors of the posters are another topic of discussion when analyzing the degree to which these posters are successful. This other method is the realization of the identity of the speaker and therefore the relevance it has to the situation. The people we are to envision speaking these haunting words are none other than the people who wrote them in big bold letters on poster paper in the first place- the students. The students are the party directly impacted by the imminent danger of school shootings, making them the ones whose say has the most relevance. Their emotions and feelings on the topic are the closest to the issue presented, seeing as they have the closest perspective from within the walls of the schools that are at any moment in danger of being attacked. Having a student saying these things about having PTSD and having to write a will shows how directly school shootings impact them. This invocation of a reliable source with real insight on the situation is a tactical employment of ethos. The majority of the population of the United States is not in schools, so having these heart wrenching saying come from a reliable source we know has a unique perspective on the matter makes the point more clear and valuable. Having the students as the authors of these posters presents them as sources of relevant and reliable material, claiming ethos as a strategic point used in the persuasive nature of the posters. The timely nature of the message in both posters helps convey the sense of urgency and […]
Passion Post #4
You did it! You made it through auditions! You gave it your all, pushed past the pounding heart and sweaty palms, and gave the performance of your life! Now you can relax… Or not. Because guess what? You rocked that audition! And now, it’s time for callbacks. Hey, don’t get me wrong, it’s great you got a callback! That means they actually want to put you in the show! And all of that stuff the director said in the email about how if you didn’t get a callback, don’t worry because that doesn’t mean you aren’t in the show, just that they don’t need to see you perform again? Yeah, as you can guess, that’s crap. You don’t get a callback, you aren’t in. So congratulations! You even got called back for a few different leads! But now you have to do it all over again. Kind of. Call backs are going to work a little differently. You got called back for a named part, correct? Which means a few songs and some sides (a excerpt from the script, maybe not a full scene, but enough to mess around with on stage) were sent to you in your callback email, and you have to prepare them for callbacks- which are tomorrow, by the way. Don’t freak out, that’s very common of directors to do, make call backs so close to original auditions, so that they can get the casting out of the way and so everything is fresh in their minds. Because this is a musical you are auditioning for, everyone will have to dance. You walk through the doors into the auditorium and are immediately split into groups and taught about 30 seconds of a dance. Then you are bustled around to go learn the singing that goes along with that dance. And now is practice, practice, practice, oh! Times up! Now to perform the dance on stage, and… done! Seems like it went fast? That’s because the dance section always does. The directing team wants to see how you respond to being taught, as well as how you work with others and if you crack under pressure. Another reason the dance section seems to go so fast is because everyone who got a callback is there for that part, so the directors really want to get as many people as they can out of there fast. Okay. So, that part is over. Now the director is telling you that if you were only called back for ensemble you may leave, and over half of the students there do. You, however, stay put. You were called back for a named part, after all. So sit back, and kick up your heels. Time to wait…
Introduction Paragraph
The importance of education in America has long been emphasized and reiterated as demand for jobs that require higher levels of education increases. However, as safety in schools has become more of an issue and the frequency of school shootings has increased tenfold, education itself has taken almost a back seat as an issue when compared with the larger issue of saving the lives of children who could be at risk just by going to school. On March 14, over 1000 students stood up and walked out of class to participate in a walk out to bring awareness to the lives lost because of school shootings. Scattered among the determined, passionate, and even angry faces in that crowd are the words on the posters they hold. One such sign screamed, “I go to school to get As, not PTSD.”, and another reads “I should be writing my college essay, not my will.” In light of the shooting in Parkland just a month before, these posters dig directly into the heart of the issue at hand, addressing the audience from the perspective of sources close to the matter using tactics that ensnare the emotions of the reader. Elevated feelings of pity, shock, and determination accompany the call to action hidden in this poster behind the reliability of the speakers and the timing of the poster itself.
Passion Post #3
Now that we’ve covered what goes into an audition, we can look at the real deal. I’ve auditioned for 13 shows in my life. Thinking about the fact that each show takes months to prepare and perfect, that’s a great deal of shows. It is very likely and highly possible that due to my extensive background in theatre, you would imagine auditions are no big deal, old hat, not a problem. After all, I must be used to them by now, right? Wrong. Truly, you never “get used to” auditions. There should never be a point where you believe an audition is no big deal because you’ve done it a million times before. If you get to that point, you are too cocky, and your performance will suffer because of it. Each audition should feel nerve racking and even scary. It should cause your heart to race and your pulse to skyrocket. It should feel like you can live and die in that one moment that you start performing. Ever heard some sort of variation of, “live every day like it’s your last”? Well, there’s a saying very similar that is widely known among performers. Perform like it’s opening night. This means exactly what you think it means. Opening night is arguably the most important night in the life span of a show. It is the first time you can show the world a piece of art that means so much to so many people. It is the night that defines how successful you have been the past few months, and it can set the tone for any other shows to come. Opening night should be performed at 150%. Likewise, every time you perform, you should be acting 150%, like it really is the most important thing you will ever do. So imagine you’re in the audition room. You walk in, you say hello to the judges or director or whoever is watching, make a few comments that could be mildly amusing or at least engaging, and then perform whatever it was you prepared like it’s the most important thing you’ll ever do. And see the frantic scribbling on papers the director is doing? Can you make out what she’s writing? Does that say wonderful or horrible? Guess what? It doesn’t matter. You are performing to the best of your ability, so lift your head, stop trying to look at that paper, and simply enjoy yourself! This could be the audition to end all auditions- and shouldn’t it be? So get out there, and perform like it’s opening night.
Civic Artifact Outline
I. Introduction Hook- paint picture of situation Explanation of purpose of students standing out there Clarification of civic artifact being the clipboard itself and the people that accompany the clipboard help meaning Meaning as encouragement to engage in civic activity II. Historical Context Origination of nation as a place of freedom and democracy Importance of engagement in the way the nation works- for turn out to b e significant Reminder of those who fought to give us this very right- wars, politicians, movements, mention Civil Rights as well as amendments III. Meaning Voting a civic right and duty Engagement leads to… Greater say, larger understanding of nation as a whole, place in world Nod to the opposing viewpoint- Also respectful of right to abstain, keeping with freedoms so vital in our culture IV. Connection to Today Importance of this generation having a say The shift of ideas and values in this generation need to be brought to further concideration “How do we expect to see the things that we consider dear and important to us com into play in today’s government if we never do anything about it?” Lack of involvement and feigned indifference are massive problems- “we are all shying away from the hard questions, so why do we assume they are magically going to be answered the way we want them to be?” V. What can we Do? Involvement Action beyond voting? Maybe just plausible to not expect so much so fast VI. Conclusion Reimplementation of meaning & restate purpose What to do with information- take it to heart VOTE
Passion Post 2
Welcome to Theatre! When people think of the theatre, a variety of ideas and conceptions go through their head. Everything from fancy elderly folk dressing up to go to see a fancy show to elaborate costumes and extensive musical numbers. Fantastic colors and special effects often dazzle audiences, and endearing characters draw you in to the story behind the story, to the true motivations of the characters. However, there is a story laid even deeper in the foundations of a production, and that is the story of producing the spectacular show you see in the end. Most people don’t think about the hours and hours (almost 500 for any one cast member) that goes into the final product, the numerous late night rehearsals and impromptu pizza orders, the cast and crew dance offs, and the thousands of pieces of duct tape that are secretly holding the whole show together (sometimes literally). Stick with me, because I intend to show you the full theatrical experience, starting with auditions and ending with set strike after the final performance and the cast party. I’ll teach you everything from “Going loud” to “the heartbeat”, what it means to be in the parade and how characters create their profile. Stick with me, and I will help you create your very own theatre show experience, without the fear of stage fright or opening night jitters. Let’s jump right in with auditions. Depending on the nature of the show, the first round of auditions can be very different. For example, if it is a musical show, you can definitely expect not only an acting portion, but a singing portion, too. For most auditions, they will ask you to prepare a one to two minute monologue (an extended speech made by a single actor or actress) as well as a 30 to 60 second excerpt of a song. This song excerpt usually means a verse and a chorus of a song. When choosing your monologue and song, you want to choose things that best showcase you, and whatever you are good at! For example, if you are really good at acting sad, then maybe a monologue at someone’s deathbed would be moving and a good choice for you! Same with the song- if you have a strong belting voice and always wail away to Demi Lovato and Ariana Grande songs, choose a song that shows that off! Okay, you chose a monologue and song, you’re sitting in the audition room, ready with the paper you just filled out with all of your past experiences (and I do mean everything- if you danced for four years when you were in elementary school, write that down- it can’t hurt!) and your reason for wanting to be a part of the production nicely laid out. Now the pressure is on. Feel that pit in your stomach? Those butterflies? The way your heart basically leaps out of your chest every time another person is called into the audition room and there is that panicked moment of, “OMG is it me?”. Check back next week and I’ll tell you how everything is going to go down once you get into that room, the number one thing NOT to do before you enter, and the best way to relax after all is said and done!
RCL Post 2
November 6th. This is the date on the lips of every political activist around Penn State that carries a light brown clipboard with the form to register to vote in State College in tow. It is the date that screams important as we hear about civic duty and how to become more involved in our government. It is the date that carries the idea that we are the change we want to see in the world to fruition. It is the day of the general election. It also happens to be in exactly one month. Why is this information crucial to the effectiveness of those relentlessly persistent volunteers who sign people up to vote in Pennsylvania? Well, imagine it like this: someone walks up to you today and asks you who you think is going to take home the gold in the next Summer Olympics archery competition. This question might baffle you at first, and rightly so, but not just because you likely have no idea who is even going to be competing. No, the reason it is likely to confuse you is because the next Summer Olympics are two years away! It does not make practical sense to talk about an event that far in the future seeing as there are more pressing issues now, such as the Winter Olympics or even the outcome of the Big Ten this year. These issues are much more current, and therefore the kairos is properly implemented and helps bring an idea across. People are far more interested in issues that have proper kairos, that are at the right moment, than things that have no current relevance to them. The implementation of kairos with regards to the volunteers getting people to vote is extremely important because of the relevance. People are interested in getting things done in the now, so giving them that opportunity is interesting to them and allows them to have importance now.