I have to admit I did not have high hopes for Howard Korder’s Boy’s Life. In fact I was convinced that it would be a non-musical version of [title of show] and as my collogues in my writing class know, I was not really too fond of [title of show] to put it nicely. However, I was pleasantly surprised by Boy’s Life. First of all it starred Jason Biggs from American Pie fame, but more importantly, at least to me, Stephanie March from Law and Order: SVU played a bit part. My college classmates do not know this but when I was a junior in high school I was obsessed with L&W: SVU. I watched every episode-old and new, I knew the names and the minute details about the characters and the actors who played them and Stephanie March was one of my favorite female actresses and even though I have since turned my attention to another actress, it was a pleasant surprise seeing Ms. March on stage. I resisted the urge to run onstage in order to prove to myself that it was really her.
The play centers around three “men” Jack, Don, and Phil who physically appear to be men but their actions and thought processes reveal how immature they truly are. One character, Jack, played by Rhys Coiro is married with a young son but he continues to live as if he were a freshman in college. He flirts with other women and he verbally abuses his son. He spends most of his time with his friends Don (Peter Scanavino) and Phil. (Jason Briggs). Don has severe inferiority issues and has a deep desire to be somebody. Phil, like the others is lost, but in a more enduring way. He’s like a small child trying to find his way in the world. It is a little unsetting that he is a “grown” man and still seems to be at a loss with what to do with his life.
Nevertheless, despite the serious themes in the play, it was quite hilarious. I found myself literally laughing out loud. The weekend of November 9th was not a great one for me, but for an hour and a half I was able to forget my troubles and have a good time.

This was also my last trip to NYC with my writing 100 class and as expected I was sad. I had so much fun with this class and getting to know my classmates a little better. It really did aid me in my transition into college!

When the curtains opened the first song was "Good Mourning Balitmore" which is one of my favorite songs in the show. The play has so much energy and some great catchy tunes. The play is about a girl named Trace and how her dream of being on the Corny Collins Show. One day they have auditions and Trace try's out for the show hoping she will get in. This fun loving show really gets you going with its great music and dancing. This play is a must see!

Today's opera is still in an evolutionary stage. Experts consider musical periods in around one hundred fifty-year cycles; the Baroque period lasted from 1600 to 1750, the next era is split in half with the Classical period ranging from 1750 to 1825, and the Romantic from 1825 to 1900, and it is estimated that the Contemporary period will span through 2050, leaving much chance of evolution through this Contemporary period. Many trends have already emerged from Contemporary composers, including experimentation with atonality, minimalism, and New Romanticism. A good example of the Contemporary opera is John Adams's Dr. Atomic, from 2005. This opera focuses on the situations leading up to the first test of the atomic bomb and the reaction of the leader of the project, Dr. J Robert Oppenheimer, who goes through a mental breakdown as the opera progresses. The lyrics of this opera all come from primary sources; for example, a duet between Oppenheimer and his wife uses verses from their favorite poet, Baudelaire, and the aria, entitled "Trinity," which acts as the close of the first act is the text of Oppenheimer's favorite poem of the same name by John Donne. The conversations that take place during the opera come from letters and other documents that were recorded during the testing in New Mexico. The music accompanying these lyrics is an excellent illustration of the Contemporary styles, including a combination of minimalism and the New Romanticism, which creates a style known as post-minimalism. The minimalist style refers to repeating the same melodic, rhythmic, or harmonic patterns, and is known to sound entrancing and frantic at the same time. New Romantic music shows preference to the harmonic accompaniment that was popular in the Romantic period. Dr Atomic reflects all of the ideals of Contemporary composers, with its use of Contemporary trends, as well as contemporary topics; as John Adams says, "If opera is actually going to be part of our lives, it has to deal with contemporary topics," such as the atomic bomb from the World War II era. As for current musical theater trends, there are many revivals of past successes, off-beat musicals, musicals based on films, and musicals based on famous performers. It may be that the American musical theater scene is going through a transitional phase, which will eventually even out to reveal a new generation of great, original musicals that have some sort of unifying theme. It might be that this is the new generation of musicals, where there are only a handful of original works, with majority of the work being a product of combining dramatic elements in order to create a cohesive musical product.

Again, I'm sorry I couldn't produce anything more interesting, but it's the best I could do without getting to New York one last time. Obviously, the research paper includes in-text citations, but I did not want to have a bibliography with this blog post, so I omitted the citations. Also, I'm sorry this is so long, especially with this subject matter.

Finally, it came to 3pm and was time to go see the play we were all awaiting. It was just Jen, Christine, Naomi, and I and as we walked in it was so different from any other play we have ever been to before. It was not situated in a huge building with a crazy line or loaded with advertising ,but yet, in a sort of loft space and made me feel as if I was watching a performance in my own home. I found the play to be very unique with its set on wheels and how all of the stage crew was somehow integrated in the play itself. The whole performance in general made me laugh so hard and I believe was an excellent choice especially as a freshman in college right now. I would definitely recommend it to anyone who is in need of a good laugh or of a play that is quite underrated. 

In the end, nothing could chance the fact it was sad because it was our last trip to the city. I think although it is sad my class will never forget all the good times we had and I will never forget Dr. Shosh's class and what I have learned in Broadway and Beyond(Fall of 2008).

Before seeing the production on Broadway, I was informed that we would be reading the play, and I was not all that excited, because plays are supposed to be seen and not read. Being the student that I am, I completed the assignment and was completely blown away. I simply could not wait to see Equus. The opening scene introduces everything, including Dysart, as well as the test for the characters to overcome; Alan Strang is brought to the psychiatric hospital, instead of being sent to prison, and Dysart is the doctor whose job it is to figure out why Alan has committed a terrible act of violence. Our class textbook states that drama is synonymous with sports, in that it must include limited time and space, opposing and evenly matched forces, with goals for all participants to keep the action moving through the series of crises. The level of limits in Equus involve the the time, where Dysart reflects on a number of days with Alan, as Alan recounts the time preceding the event that brought him to the hospital. Dysart discovers many opposing forces, including Mr. and Mrs. Strang, who disagree on religion, as well as many aspects of raising their son. Another set of opposing forces is between Mr. Strang and Alan, which somewhat resolves itself in Alan's mind when he learns that Mr. Strang is not infallible, but rather hypocritical. A third opposition exists between Dysart and his wife, who live in an incompatible marriage. The audience never sees Mrs. Dysart, but it is apparent that there is tension between the two that transcends into Dysart's work life and the confusion that he feels over Alan's conviction of his faith where Dysart feels as though he is jealous of Alan for having something that he loves so deeply.

Equus also has a very strong plot, with many flashbacks, but also keeps very good time within itself. The way the flashbacks occur are very interesting, and it is difficult to imagine while reading the play how a director will portray the different scenery. After seeing the production, I found it very impressive that the lights and sound can change the whole mood to illustrate the change in time and setting.

Overall, the play amazing, and the production took what was written and made of it a masterpiece. I was very pleased by all of the actor's performances, and thought that the background people behind the lights, sound, and scenery made the performance that much more incredible.