Blood Brothers Performance
Blood Brothers Performance Evaluation of a Live Piece of Drama I went to see "Blood Brothers" at the Phoenix Theatre in London on Thursday 9th June, for the matinee, 2:30, performance. The piece of Drama, in my opinion, was very successful, having thoroughly believed the characters and their roles throughout the performance, and left with a satisfied feeling that I had seen a plausible and realistic piece of true, entertaining drama. This essay will detail the things in the play that have led me to this opinion, as well as things on which I thought could have been improved. Blood Brothers tells the story of two twin boys, separated at birth only to be bought together and dragged apart throughout the play, ending in tragedy when they truly discover who they are. When Mrs. Johnston discovers she's expecting twins, the only thing she can do to keep the family alive is to give one away - to her broody boss Mrs. Lyons. It's only when the boys are firmly pulled apart that Mrs. Johnston truly realises what she's done, and regrets the choices she's made. As the years go by and Mrs. Johnston sees the boys brought together by fate and dragged away by Mrs. Lyons, Micky and Edward, the twins, form a firm friendship, with each other, and Linda, who Micky ends up marrying. But after a spell in prison, Micky is continually depressed, and pushes Linda to find it hard to stay and not play
Drama theatre evaluation of Miss Saigon
Drama theatre evaluation of Miss Saigon Miss Saigon uses cutting edge visual techniques and a brilliant new set which vividly recreates the streets of Vietnam and Bangkok. Set in 1975 during the final days leading up to the American evacuation of Saigon, Miss Saigon is an epic love story about the relationship between an American GI and a young Vietnamese woman. When it comes to musicals, people fall broadly into two camps. Either you like them, or you don't. Either you can accept the idea that singing and dancing can be used to tell a straight story, or you can't. As such, you probably already know whether you'll like Miss Saigon or not. If you like musicals, you'll probably like it. If you can't stand them, you probably won't. The purpose of this review, then, is basically to refine that "probably" down into a "definitely" (or, as the case may be, "definitely not"). First things first; Miss Saigon is distinctly a type-two musical. If you come to the theatre expecting something in the style of Chitty-Chitty Bang-Bang or The Wizard of Oz , then you are going to be deeply surprised. When something's set in Vietnam, you know it isn't going to be all sweets and somewhere over the rainbow. Miss Saigon sets a powerful score over a heartbreaking plotline, which is likely to have the average audience member in tears by the end of the first act. The cast and ensemble all give
A comparison between Keith Waterhouse's 'Billy Liar' and Willy Russell's 'Blood Brothers'
A comparison between Keith Waterhouse's 'Billy Liar' and Willy Russell's 'Blood Brothers'. The novel 'Billy Liar' was written in 1959 about Billy Fisher, a working-class 19 year old, who lives with his parents in the town of Stradhoughton (a fictional town) in Yorkshire. His job as a clerk for an undertaker bores him, which is why Billy spends his time living in fantasies and dreams of life in the city as a comedy writer. However, with three current girlfriends, his exaggerated imagination comes at a cost. On the other hand 'Blood Brothers' is a 1983 musical which revolves around twins separated at birth. The story is set in Liverpool, and begins in the late 1950s and ends around the 1980s. Throughout, the story is narrated. 'Billy Liar' is a kitchen sink drama, which deals with the domestic issues of a disillusioned youth and his dysfunctional family. The acting style is realistic and there is a fourth wall, there is also one actor for the role of each character. Whereas, in 'Blood Brothers' actors change their role in front of the audience. For example, the milkman turns into the doctor through the use of a simple prop. The musical starts with a song unlike 'Billy Liar', which starts with an ordinary scene of the family at breakfast. There are many non-realistic techniques used in 'Blood Brothers' such as, used of chorus in synchronisation and freeze frames. It uses the
Gothic Horror Story
Gothic Horror Story There had been three victims now, no-one knew why or how but day after day helpless souls had disappeared and despite the horrific state of their houses and the gruesome mess left behind, there was no firm evidence of why these feeble, defenceless people were being abducted from the tiny village of Ducklington. The first was Bill, the local milkman. He hadn't been into work one morning so some friends went to check on him, only to find an open door, an empty bed and the remains of Bills' rent and torn flesh and splintered bones scattered carelessly around his house. The next victims were the two mad sisters who lived at the end of Baker Street - Lillie and Violet, who had been malevolently attacked along with their dog, Archie. A frightful atmosphere was showering the village. Folk were talking, staring, whispering. The whole village was searched, every nook and cranny, every bed, every room, every dusty cupboard under the stairs. People were questioned and queried, falsely accused. The only place that hadn't been tampered with was the heavily wooded, daunting, isolated forest behind the village. No-one had ventured in there for years. There were myths and tales about the creatures and horrors of the forest, but no-one truly believed them and cast them to the back of their mind. I woke up one sunny Saturday morning, dressed and went to the corner shop
Prison Scene (Blood Brothers)
PRACTICAL WORK DRAMA LESSON EDWARD VISITS MICKEY IN PRISON Our task today was to create a scene showing Edward visiting Mickey in prison. Before the short scene commenced both characters were instructed to improvise a monologue at the beginning to show the contrasting situations of life between the twin brothers and also the contrast in their spirit. The whole scenario clearly communicated this; Mickey being in prison and depressed, Edward's enthusiasm and excitement to tell Mickey the news about his new social life at university. PLOT and TECHNIQUES used The genre of our piece was "serious drama" because it featured realistic elements. The main effect we used was the silence. This provided a tense atmosphere and hooked the audiences attention. Before Edward enters the prison, a split scene is used as the monologues are individually acted out. Edward jumps out of his seat in the waiting room with enthusiasm as visitors are escorted to the visiting room. Mickey appears with a black eye and eye contact with the floor. His character maintains a motionless facial expression as if he is completely numb. Edward greets him with open arms and a warm smile and Mickey remains numb, not even acknowledging Edwards's presence. Edward begins to spark up a conversation and tells him about university, his new group of friends, his love life and studies as Mickey still remains mute.
Blood Brothers Evaluation. After we watched Blood Brothers, we acted out certain scenes from the script and attempted to use various techniques to portray the story in many different ways.
GCSE Drama - 5DRO2 Unit 2 Documentary Response By Luke Warner Over the past term, me and my fellow classmates have studied the play 'Blood Brothers' by Willy Russell. The hit West-End show follows the story of two twins, separated at birth and brought up in two very different social backgrounds; one growing up in a rich family, while the other remains with his real mother in a poor family, living in the slums of Liverpool. The play explores many themes, ranging from the problems of society, to the possibility of superstition playing a massive part on life. After we watched 'Blood Brothers', we acted out certain scenes from the script and attempted to use various techniques to portray the story in many different ways. 'Blood Brothers' tells the tale of Mickey and Eddie, two twins separated at birth due to a number of reasons. The first act introduces the story, and examines the events leading up to the birth. It also witnesses their first meetings as children. This part of the play is very comedic, however the frequent use of the narrator (who plays a paramount role throughout the play) quickly shifts what appears to be a funny scene into a dark and eerie one. The second act sees the reunion of the brothers, now hit with puberty, and an increasing sense of competition. Although initially positive, the story takes a turn for the worse when Mickey is badly affected by the
Response to play's and other types of drama - In this essay I am going to compare my play with three comparatives.
AQA GCSE Drama: Response to play's and other types of drama In this essay I am going to compare my play with three comparatives. The play I performed was devised from the story of "Ashputtel", originally written by The Brother's Grimm in the 1900's, and re-written by Carol Ann Duffy. The other three texts are, The "Just So stories", originally written by Rudyard Kipling in 1902 and later adapted by Jamilla Gavin, "The Metamorphosis" by Franz Kafka in 1915, also, "The Grimm's fairytales" by The Brother's Grimm, written in the early twentieth century. My performance, based upon the story of "Ashputtel", was set in the 1800's, in possibly Germany or Austria, and was similar to "Cinderella". The original form of the story was narration, but was adapted, and a variety of forms were used. It was physical theatre; using stylistic movements, robotic movements, repetition, simultaneity, chorus, and sound collage were used. The "Just So Stories" are about two children whose parents have left them in the care of their Uncle and maid. It is set in the 1900's, "Uncle Ruddy" acts as a narrator, and he tells the children stories about animals and metamorphosis. It was naturalistic but fictional. It was aimed at children, delivering morals in an enjoyable form. The many forms used were similar to my performance, using repetition, narration, and chorus. The forms were
Drama Development coursework
Drama Coursework- Development In the 1980's there was a great recession in which thousands and thousands lost there jobs, in the 1980's the interest rate peeked at nearly 20%, causing Unemployment and everyone struggling for money. Liverpool, the setting of Blood Brothers was hit very badly with more than half the population unemployed, with masses moving out everyday to find jobs elsewhere. It is relevant for audiences watching Blood Brothers today because Britain may again be slipping into an economic rut, thought it will not nearly be as bad as the 1980's. In class we have one lots of practical work about the play and worked a lot on characterisation, and thought through how we would play particular characters to make them as effective as possible, for example, in our class one group did a very good interpretation of the narrator, they showed him as a very shadowy character that controlled most of what happened in the play, like, he gave the gun to Mickey, when he was going to go kill Eddie, which gave of the impression that the narrator was bending the characters to do what he said, I liked this and found it very effective because I found the narrator a scary and sinister character and I thought the way that he controlled the play was almost like a creepy puppet show. My group showed the narrator as quite a sad character, as if she was looking down on the play with a
Act II, Scene 5: By looking closely at language and imagery, what impression is created of the brothers in the following dialogue? In what way is this scene significant in the play as a whole?
Act II, Scene 5: By looking closely at language and imagery, what impression is created of the brothers in the following dialogue? In what way is this scene significant in the play as a whole? Act II, Scene 5 of John Webster's, The Duchess of Malfi is a crucial point for both the plot and of the critical understanding of two of the play's main characters: the Aragonian Brothers, Ferdinand and Cardinal. The scene is a dialogue between the two brothers and has an abundance of imagery, providing an insight into the pair's differentiating mentalities, moods and motives. The significance of this scene can be explained in terms of the recent developments of the plot and how the two brothers react to and intended to deal with them. These developments are the recent news that Bosola has brought to Ferdinand in the form of a horoscope, telling that "The Duchess was deliver'd of a son" [II.3.56]. This must mean that the Duchess has allowed someone to "sway your [her] high blood" [I.2.218]. The revelation of the birth of a son asks the brothers whether or not they are going to carry out their previous threats: "This was my father's poniard: do you see, / I'll'd be loathe to see't look rusty," [I.2.251-2]. Ferdinand begins to suggest means in which to punish and eventually kill the Duchess and her children: "I'll bequeath this [his handkerchief] to her bastard / .............to make
Blood Brothers. In my essay I will discuss the way the actors played the roles of Mickey and Edward and how they interacted together on stage in the scene
Question 7 Choose one production you have seen during your curse in which the actors worked well together on stage. Discuss, in detail, the way n which any two performers played their roles and interacted together on stage in at least one specific scene or section. You will need to include reference to voice, movement, characterisation and relationships between characters on stage. Play: Blood brothers Theatre: Phoenix theatre. Location: Tottenham Court Road Date: 4th of December 2008. Blood brothers is a musical about fraternal twins who were separated at birth one was brought up in a rich family and the other in a poor family. When they reunite there fate was written and the play ended in a tragedy when both twins met and both died a tragic at the same time and place. In my essay I will discuss the way the actors played the roles of Mickey and Edward and how they interacted together on stage in the scene where Mickey and Edward first met when they became blood brothers. I am going to talk about the way the actors projected their voice, their movement on stage, the characterisation and relationships between characters on stage. The scene that I'm referring to is the scene in which Mickey and Edward become blood brothers. The only characters in the scene are Mickey and Edward. In this scene the actors who played as Mickey and Edward were grown men acting as children. The