Study Hamilton materials carefully – videos, reading, and photos. Discuss the design and technical elements of Hamilton: The Musical and compare this to the last live musical performance you attended? (If you haven’t attended a musical theatre performance in recent memory, you may use a music concert, dance concert, church pageant/play. Read & Follow the Checklist Below. If you need a hard copy of the Questions & Instructions, highlight/copy/paste in a DOC file and print. Please refer to the Greenroom Discussion Rubric. This is the grading rubric that will be used to grade each of your discussions.
Top of Form
How did the visual and/or audio elements of this performance impact the experience?
Give explicit examples from the Hamilton performance and/or your experiences.
Bottom of Form
Top of Form
Did the elements of the production seem to be unified and to fit together seamlessly?
How was this reflected in the visual elements (the scenery, props, costumes, lighting, etc.)? Examples needed.
Bottom of Form
Top of Form
Did each of the character’s costumes seem appropriate for the style (realistic or nonrealistic) of the piece?
Give example(s).
Bottom of Form
Top of Form
Discuss the effectiveness of the set (scenery or pieces of scenery which stand independently in a scene) and the props.
Give example(s).
Bottom of Form
Top of Form
Describe the mood of the lighting.
Give example(s).
Bottom of Form
Top of Form
Describe the music and sound (sound effects, reinforcement, environmental background).
Give example(s).
In your ORIGINAL post, did you?
- Discuss and develop this post effectively and thoroughly (100-150 words “C” grade; well-beyond 150 words needed to get more credit)
- Include evidence of reflection and critical thinking (application, analysis, synthesis and evaluation)
- Include detailed examples
- Include underlined terms: at least 4 (four) terms from ACT I: TERMS “The Theatre”
- Citations from course materials: More than 2(two) parenthetical citations from readings, slides, handouts and videos assigned. See WRITING & CITATION GUIDE
- Discuss each term used thoroughly to show that you fully understand the term and have used it correctly and in the appropriate context.
In your REPLY post, did you?
- Develop your Reply Post to be thoughtful, relevant and on topic (50-75 words to achieve “C” grade: more than 75 words for more credit)
- Illustrate that you have paid attention to peer’s posting, and include evidence of reflection and critical thinking.
- Avoid “agreement” type of reply essay that consists of a statement of agreement and/or repeating the main points of your peer’s post. You will lose points if you post an “agreement type” post.
Classmate to reply
From what I’ve watched of the play Hamilton, I can say that the directors relied heavily on the usage of Lighting design and technology. According to Levin (2022), The functions and objectives of lighting design are to provide visibility; reveal shapes and forms; provide focus; create moods; reinforce style; establish time and place; establish rhythm; reinforce central visual image. In Hamilton the lights were able to emphasize the characters on stage and effectively draw the attention of the audience onto a sole character. I found the lighting enhanced the dramatics of the solos for the characters singing. I haven’t attended a live performance since coronavirus hit, so my memory of the last concert I experienced isn’t fresh. Although my memory isn’t the greatest, I can say the lighting was extremely similar. I went to a Kiss concert which relied heavily on the dramatics of lighting. There was a lot of movement from the lighting crew which was also a trait in the play Hamilton. The audio usage in Hamilton was very modern compared to the story. They used rap as a way to tell the history which added a modern twist to the play. The actors and actresses were able to turn history into an uplifting, fun experience through their song choices. If you have ever heard a Kiss song, then you would know that their songs are also energizing.
The elements of the production seemed to clash in my opinion. The scenery and some of the costumes were able to depict an older time period while the music was entirely different. The sound designer seemed to take a modern approach to the play by having the actors rap during the play. A sound designer is the position who controls and/or creates anything that is heard during the production including- sound design (technical and conceptual) and the aural environment of the show (ACT VII: CUES & CONCEPTS, 2022). These effects clash with the history, costumes, and scenery. Each of the character’s costumes varied in authenticity. King George’s costume was realistic, to my knowledge, for the time period. He had on his powdered wig with the kingly garb. The other characters didn’t use powdered wigs. Powdered wigs were highly fashionable at the time, so the fact that they weren’t wearing one took away from the realistic side of their costumes. However, not all the characters looked totally unrealistic. Some of the women wore gowns that looked genuine for the time period. I also noticed that there were some women who wore men’s clothing which would have been highly inappropriate for the time. Although all of their costumes weren’t historically correct, I think it didn’t take away from the performance. I believe the directors and costume designers were going with a modern twist for the tale. For that very reason, I think their costumes were appropriate for the goal of the play. The concert that I had attended was able to achieve appropriateness for their performance because they each had on their infamous face make up. It has been their image for decades now, so it was only appropriate for them to wear their infamous costumes.
The scenery of the set was enhanced by a turntable. According to Levin (2022), a turntable is a large turntable on which scenery is placed so that as it moves, one set turns out of sight while a new one is brought into view. This is how the scenes moved from one act to the next. The usage of props like the pistols during the duel were able to add to the historical element of the play. The singers from Kiss used fire as a prop which caused that energizing wow factor. The mood of the lighting for Hamilton changed based off the mood and scenes they were acting out. Mainly the lighting was focused on one sole actor during their solos while Kiss’s lighting was erratic to hype up the crowd and band. The lighting at Hamilton had a more thought-out purpose for each individual scene. Both performances had dramatic lighting, but they varied in degrees. The music for Hamilton was mainly catchy raps and hip hop. They were able to deliver the history of Hamilton through a fun, modern musical.
Bottom of Form
