Massachusetts Educational Theater Musical Awards Musical Critique
NAME OF ADJUDICATOR: Michael McGarty
DATE OF PRODUCTION VIEWED: 4/11/15
NAME OF PERFORMING SCHOOL: Archie R. Cole Middle School
TITLE OF PRODUCTION: Willy Wonka Jr.
Technical Critique
Technical Design and Execution
What a beautifully designed show! The backdrops gave us a real sense of fun appropriate to the piece. The storybook house worked beautifully, opening silently to reveal the family. One critique would be that it shouldn't be opened flat but on an angle to keep that sense of "storybook" look. The Wonka gate was gorgeous and the different rooms were cleverly created. LOVED the door ballet of all the rooms. What a fun concept. Lighting was ok but too often the full stage was lit when it wasn't necessary. To focus the energy of a scene, you need to focus in your light to the specific place where the scene takes place. The special lighting effects were well done and gave a magical quality to the show. Costumes seemed to be two leveled. There were the theatrical professional ones like Wonka's, and the Oompa Loompas, but then the random colorful ones that were on the chorus. What time period are you in? It seemed very unclear. Makeup needed some work especially on the older characters. Grandpa Bucket hardly seemed the correct age. There was not enough grey in his hair or facial makeup to show a more aged look. Props were good. Sound was pretty good microphone wise but the sound was in and out at times. Stage management was SMOOTH with everything coming on efficiently. Bravo. Overall, the technical production gave us a wonderful world to live in for a few hours. Congratulations to your entire tech crew.
Performance Critique
Acting
There were a lot of cute moments on stage in this show. The actors were well rehearsed and created a very smooth performance. What I think I needed to see was a lot more energy on everyone's part. With the exception of Charlie, the energy level of the characters seemed to sit down on the stage and not make its way into the house (like it did in "The Little Mermaid" in the fall) Part of the problem is that most of the actors have no physical energy when they don't have a line. They need to be more actively involved in whatever scene is happening on the stage. Too often they were animated when they said a line or sung a song, but didn't continue that focused energy once they finished. The accent work was good on the supporting characters. Go further now to learn how to make the accent consistent. There were lots of moments that came forward with great success.
Candy Man song was well sung by Samantha but would have liked more energy and fun with it. Grandpa Bucket showed a nice irascible character that was endearing. Your Cheer Up Charlie number was nice and sweet. Make sure you take enough of a breath before you sing. You seemed to be running out of breath at times. Father Bucket, you had a nice singing voice, but don't just stand there when you sing. Let the meaning and emotion of the words follow through your body as you sing and you'll have us on your side. Violet...nice gum chewing that didn't get in the way of your words Bravo. And your singing voice was very good but be careful not to slide back and forth between notes. Augustus...your solo as they wheeled you off to be "dechocolated" was great! Oompa Loompas....I LOVED WHAT YOU DID! For the rest, you had a wonderful show that you all obviously were having fun with. Continue to build on your energy during scenes and build your focus. Then you'll have an even better show. Congratulations to all.
Choral Ensemble
The choral work was very good. With your next show, you might try to add more harmonies to some songs. You obviously have a great group of singers. Avoid placing chorus members in lines across the stage. Create stage pictures instead with groupings rather than lines. Don't forget to use the floor of the stage if possible for a sense of height.
Dance Ensemble
The dances (especially the Oompa Loompas) were good. I was glad to see some of the chorus numbers used circular movements to break up the lines. Try to find more of that in your dances. Also get the students to use more of their bodies in what dance moves you give them. Right now it's all about feet placement and hand gestures....the rest of the body seems to be missing in the dances.
Stage Direction
The show was beautiful to look at. The production had the right sense of playfullness for Willy Wonka and the audience obviously appreciated it. Meggan....I saw both "Little Mermaid" and Willy Wonka this season. The technical success in both shows is very evident and you're really lucky to have so many dedicated people to make the look of each show so perfect.
1. Transitions....make sure that your transitions from one scene to the next are well rehearsed. Your scenic moves are pretty good (make sure all the tech crew is in black....even their shoes....red or orange sneakers take focus). Try to fade the sound (not the music, but the silence) at the end of each musical sequence. Train your spotlight person. The followspot person has to be aware of what the position and opening is on the spot BEFORE he tries to commit to a cue.
2. Make sure that costumes all follow the same general period. It was a problem with both Alice and Wonka. The chorus seemed an afterthought costume wise....Your props are usually great all around...Aging makeup is important in such a large hall. I'm guess that the makeup looked great from about 10 feet away but you have a house of a few hundred people and it has to play that far away.
3. Acting....First...energy.....you need to get more energized performances out of your actors. They have tons of talent but I've noticed that many of them are content to create characters that are lacking in that "in the moment" energy. Mike Teavee was a good example of putting that energy on stage. Every time he spoke he was not only vocally bouncing his words off the back of the house but his physical energy/tension was very evident. He was always reacting to everything that happened on the stage. All characters need emotion and middle school actors need it even more to have their roles bounce off the stage.
4. A few strengths in your shows....You handle "flying" very well and very creatively....bravo....Your special effects are usually VERY good and well placed.....(LOVED the glitter finale and the bubbles). You have a very strong support group. Use them well and thank them profusely. And thank you for a wonderful experience.
Noteworthy Actors
Madeline Morin
Madeline....you have a beautiful singing voice and did a good job of handling a range that was obviously meant for a male baritone. You did a good job varying some of the low notes and I think you could have varied a lot more of them up an octave to get us to hear your words better. When you did get a chance to go up into your range the music was lovely. With the character, you gave us a very even tempered Wonka. Any character in a show...especially a leading character has to go on a journey where the character goes through many emotions and changes. In the Wonka movie we can see those changes happen on Wonka's face but you can't really do that on stage, so you have to find other ways of letting the audience see the changes. In your next role, search out all the reactions that your character could have to every line that is spoken to him/her, then experiment with those reactions to see which ones fit the best. Do this as well with the songs and when you're done you'll have a wonderfully varied character. Great work.
Abby White
Abby....it was interesting to watch the difference in this performance compared to your Ariel performance in the fall. Your voice is well trained and you're very confident when you sing. There is a sparkle in both your voice and physicality in the middle of songs. The progress that I noted is that you became more confident in your dialogue with Willy Wonka. You were energized and gave us that wondered, inspired trait of Charlie but also the sadness and disappointment. Your changes character wise were much better in this production and you seemed to find the arc of the journey that Charlie goes through. Keep focusing on that journey...beginning, middle and end as you take on future characters. Think Positive was a really good song for you. You incorporated the same energy in your body that resounded in your voice. Nice job!
Jackson Morin
WOW! From the moment you first opened you mouth, you demanded that we pay attention to you. You created a very strong character that you totally understood. And you have a fairly strong sing voice that worked well during I See It All On TV. Be careful to enunciate all the time and also to catch all the notes in your singing. Don't let the character get ahead of you that way. If you stay in control of that energy, you'll have an incredible performance next time.
NAME OF ADJUDICATOR: Michael McGarty
DATE OF PRODUCTION VIEWED: 4/11/15
NAME OF PERFORMING SCHOOL: Archie R. Cole Middle School
TITLE OF PRODUCTION: Willy Wonka Jr.
Technical Critique
Technical Design and Execution
What a beautifully designed show! The backdrops gave us a real sense of fun appropriate to the piece. The storybook house worked beautifully, opening silently to reveal the family. One critique would be that it shouldn't be opened flat but on an angle to keep that sense of "storybook" look. The Wonka gate was gorgeous and the different rooms were cleverly created. LOVED the door ballet of all the rooms. What a fun concept. Lighting was ok but too often the full stage was lit when it wasn't necessary. To focus the energy of a scene, you need to focus in your light to the specific place where the scene takes place. The special lighting effects were well done and gave a magical quality to the show. Costumes seemed to be two leveled. There were the theatrical professional ones like Wonka's, and the Oompa Loompas, but then the random colorful ones that were on the chorus. What time period are you in? It seemed very unclear. Makeup needed some work especially on the older characters. Grandpa Bucket hardly seemed the correct age. There was not enough grey in his hair or facial makeup to show a more aged look. Props were good. Sound was pretty good microphone wise but the sound was in and out at times. Stage management was SMOOTH with everything coming on efficiently. Bravo. Overall, the technical production gave us a wonderful world to live in for a few hours. Congratulations to your entire tech crew.
Performance Critique
Acting
There were a lot of cute moments on stage in this show. The actors were well rehearsed and created a very smooth performance. What I think I needed to see was a lot more energy on everyone's part. With the exception of Charlie, the energy level of the characters seemed to sit down on the stage and not make its way into the house (like it did in "The Little Mermaid" in the fall) Part of the problem is that most of the actors have no physical energy when they don't have a line. They need to be more actively involved in whatever scene is happening on the stage. Too often they were animated when they said a line or sung a song, but didn't continue that focused energy once they finished. The accent work was good on the supporting characters. Go further now to learn how to make the accent consistent. There were lots of moments that came forward with great success.
Candy Man song was well sung by Samantha but would have liked more energy and fun with it. Grandpa Bucket showed a nice irascible character that was endearing. Your Cheer Up Charlie number was nice and sweet. Make sure you take enough of a breath before you sing. You seemed to be running out of breath at times. Father Bucket, you had a nice singing voice, but don't just stand there when you sing. Let the meaning and emotion of the words follow through your body as you sing and you'll have us on your side. Violet...nice gum chewing that didn't get in the way of your words Bravo. And your singing voice was very good but be careful not to slide back and forth between notes. Augustus...your solo as they wheeled you off to be "dechocolated" was great! Oompa Loompas....I LOVED WHAT YOU DID! For the rest, you had a wonderful show that you all obviously were having fun with. Continue to build on your energy during scenes and build your focus. Then you'll have an even better show. Congratulations to all.
Choral Ensemble
The choral work was very good. With your next show, you might try to add more harmonies to some songs. You obviously have a great group of singers. Avoid placing chorus members in lines across the stage. Create stage pictures instead with groupings rather than lines. Don't forget to use the floor of the stage if possible for a sense of height.
Dance Ensemble
The dances (especially the Oompa Loompas) were good. I was glad to see some of the chorus numbers used circular movements to break up the lines. Try to find more of that in your dances. Also get the students to use more of their bodies in what dance moves you give them. Right now it's all about feet placement and hand gestures....the rest of the body seems to be missing in the dances.
Stage Direction
The show was beautiful to look at. The production had the right sense of playfullness for Willy Wonka and the audience obviously appreciated it. Meggan....I saw both "Little Mermaid" and Willy Wonka this season. The technical success in both shows is very evident and you're really lucky to have so many dedicated people to make the look of each show so perfect.
1. Transitions....make sure that your transitions from one scene to the next are well rehearsed. Your scenic moves are pretty good (make sure all the tech crew is in black....even their shoes....red or orange sneakers take focus). Try to fade the sound (not the music, but the silence) at the end of each musical sequence. Train your spotlight person. The followspot person has to be aware of what the position and opening is on the spot BEFORE he tries to commit to a cue.
2. Make sure that costumes all follow the same general period. It was a problem with both Alice and Wonka. The chorus seemed an afterthought costume wise....Your props are usually great all around...Aging makeup is important in such a large hall. I'm guess that the makeup looked great from about 10 feet away but you have a house of a few hundred people and it has to play that far away.
3. Acting....First...energy.....you need to get more energized performances out of your actors. They have tons of talent but I've noticed that many of them are content to create characters that are lacking in that "in the moment" energy. Mike Teavee was a good example of putting that energy on stage. Every time he spoke he was not only vocally bouncing his words off the back of the house but his physical energy/tension was very evident. He was always reacting to everything that happened on the stage. All characters need emotion and middle school actors need it even more to have their roles bounce off the stage.
4. A few strengths in your shows....You handle "flying" very well and very creatively....bravo....Your special effects are usually VERY good and well placed.....(LOVED the glitter finale and the bubbles). You have a very strong support group. Use them well and thank them profusely. And thank you for a wonderful experience.
Noteworthy Actors
Madeline Morin
Madeline....you have a beautiful singing voice and did a good job of handling a range that was obviously meant for a male baritone. You did a good job varying some of the low notes and I think you could have varied a lot more of them up an octave to get us to hear your words better. When you did get a chance to go up into your range the music was lovely. With the character, you gave us a very even tempered Wonka. Any character in a show...especially a leading character has to go on a journey where the character goes through many emotions and changes. In the Wonka movie we can see those changes happen on Wonka's face but you can't really do that on stage, so you have to find other ways of letting the audience see the changes. In your next role, search out all the reactions that your character could have to every line that is spoken to him/her, then experiment with those reactions to see which ones fit the best. Do this as well with the songs and when you're done you'll have a wonderfully varied character. Great work.
Abby White
Abby....it was interesting to watch the difference in this performance compared to your Ariel performance in the fall. Your voice is well trained and you're very confident when you sing. There is a sparkle in both your voice and physicality in the middle of songs. The progress that I noted is that you became more confident in your dialogue with Willy Wonka. You were energized and gave us that wondered, inspired trait of Charlie but also the sadness and disappointment. Your changes character wise were much better in this production and you seemed to find the arc of the journey that Charlie goes through. Keep focusing on that journey...beginning, middle and end as you take on future characters. Think Positive was a really good song for you. You incorporated the same energy in your body that resounded in your voice. Nice job!
Jackson Morin
WOW! From the moment you first opened you mouth, you demanded that we pay attention to you. You created a very strong character that you totally understood. And you have a fairly strong sing voice that worked well during I See It All On TV. Be careful to enunciate all the time and also to catch all the notes in your singing. Don't let the character get ahead of you that way. If you stay in control of that energy, you'll have an incredible performance next time.
