Assignment #2

Student Characteristics

1. a) I pay attention and always listen to instructions about things we are doing in rehearsal. My eyes and ears are more acutely alert when we're learning choreography because it's more complicated for me. If I'm having any difficulties, I know I can ask a friend or ask Mrs. Keast to repeat the dance move.

b) Listening and communication within the group is crucial because without it, everything would be a mess. I'm not one for interrupting people and I don't talk very much, so that helps with efficiency in practice.

c) I wouldn't say I have loads of energy ALL the time, but I do try and I think that is still important. Most of my energy is put into my singing. I never slack off with my parts. I always use good air to improve the sound and try my best with notes and rhythms.

Goals

2. a)  My first goal is to improve my dancing. I have never been a good dancer and I never truly enjoyed it, but I know that it is inevitably a part of musical theatre and it's nothing I can't deal with. I can achieve this goal by practicing the choreo along with the CD at home, asking friends for help, practicing with a friend, and memorizing specific moves that prove to be difficult for me. I believe that by doing those things, my dancing will improve gradually. Practice makes perfect!

b) My second goal is to be more expressive and work on my acting skills. It doesn't matter that I have no lines because the background is important too. Reactions, facial expressions and body language shape a persona. Sometimes I care too much about whether I'm looking silly or not, but I realize it's stupid to focus on that. I can do these things by channeling my character and thinking of other actors that I've seen and admired their abilities. Remembering great plays I have seen helps me become a better actor because I look up to those people. I like to think from an audience member's perspective: If I was watching and saw someone who looked, for instance, troubled or bored in an extremely happy scene, I'd be confused and wonder what was wrong. I don't want to be that person, so I try my best to be convincing.

c) My third and final goal is to be able to fluently dance while properly singing my correct part. Sometimes I think that I tend focus too much on the singing and stumble on the steps, or think about the steps so much, that I'll realize I wasn't singing. I'd like to be able to be so confident on the dancing that I can fully sing my part. In order to do this, I'll have to practice, practice, practice! That's really the only way I see it getting better. Doing this, combined with dance practice, I hope they will come together.

Last year Vs. This Year

3. I was in last year's grade nine musical which was an awesome experience! I am one hundred percent sure that I have improved by a ton compared to the beginning of "And The Winner Is." When it first started, I was incredibly shy, not wanting to have a large part, lines, or a solo. As the semester continued, I realized there was nothing to be afraid of because everyone was so supportive and kind. At first I was terrified about having a duet with my friend Megan, but it became really fun later on. My acting improved just by being surrounded by awesome performers. In middle school divisional musical I was too timid to go all out, but last year was so fun, it was impossible not to be fully engaged. I hope that I can improve even more during Happy Days, because this is also a really fun, feel-good musical that I'm glad to be a part of!

Assignment #3

When I listen to all of the songs, I think they radiate happiness. It is a sort of contagious smiling, feel good soundtrack. The opening song, Welcome To Wisconsin, has a catchy beat and a full instrumental sound complete with intervals of commentary to tell the story.

My favourite song is Snap. I like it because I enjoy the tune and I love the Car Hop harmonies. I think that they complete the song and really compliment Fonzies voice. I pictured Fonzie walking around to the beat of the music in his leather jacket before the car hop girls file in for a dance number. I do not know much about dance choreography, but I think that it would be neat if Fonzie also danced with all the girls. Snap is sung by Fonzie and to my understanding, it is about The Fonz being full of himself, saying everyone loves and needs him. The song makes it seem like Fonzie can fix anything with a snap of his fingers, which is a tad unrealistic to me.

My least favourite song is What I Dreamed Last Night. I don't like it very much because it seems sort of boring to me. There isn't really a big climax of the song either. I do not like the canon between Marion and her daughter. I just don't think it fits very well. To make this song interesting, I envision Marion sitting alone at the window, staring out at a happier version of her own life. It would give the audience a new perspective. This song fits in with the play because it shows us that women really did have to do all of the housework and maybe weren't treated fairly all of the time. It is a contrast to all of the happy songs.

Assignment #1

The Happy Days episode that I watched is titled "Haunted." It is a Halloween special. All of the boys goofed around a lot and did silly things like swipe an elderly man's hat off of his head. This tells me that the kids back then were more involved with adults. These days, I think that most teens tend to avoid communication with adults (if they can).

I learned that back in the 50s, everyone was much more festive. Not many people care about dressing up for Halloween, especially teenagers. In the show, everyone was excited to put on a costume. The teenagers played bobbing for apples and danced together which no one does much of. Dancing, sure, but bobbing for apples is considered a children's game now. I feel as though now, when kids mature into teens, they care less and less about minor holidays. I like that the Happy Days teens enthusiasm did not fade.

I learned from my dad while watching this episode that Marion Ross, who plays Marion Cunningham is in a Scooby Doo movie that I enjoyed. The actors are all really good and they seem really into character. There is not one person who isn't fully animated one hundred percent of the time. I also learned that many people gave out plain apples for Halloween treats. I thought it was all candy apples!

All of the things I observed from this show can help me to get into character with a number of things. All of the girls attitudes seemed to be sweet, polite and happy. Everyone seemed to be excited most of the time and took humour easily. No one fought or caused drama. I think it is important to have a positive aura and a pleasant attitude in this musical. It is all about having fun. Now that I know how people acted back then, it is easier to act like them. If I ever need reference, I know I can always think of what I watched, or just watch another one.

Episode link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vGd1kiL5ctU