Performance: Shakespeare in Song

Introduction

It was early Saturday on March 27. My friends and I went to see the 2 o'clock showing of Shakespeare in Song performed by the University of Texas at Dallas art students. The sun was up high in the sky with no cloud in sight. It obviously did not set us or any of the audience in the mood for a performance. I was getting ready to attend a choir performance of some of Shakespeare's song.

Music

The UTD music students' performance featured many musical pieces from Shakespeare in Song. The songs sung came from ten Shakespearean plays. Their program included two or three pieces from each play.

A couple of pieces featured a solo part for a select few performers. The play opened up with the different sections in the choir singing verses in different rhythm. While the original Shakespeare songs were meant to be sung as an opera with a solo vocalist accompanied by a pianist, the performers at UTD decided to add another element to this. They choose to add in choir pieces throughout the show. The choir provided accompaniment for the soloist which helped provide a richer texture in the piece because the different parts in the choir only had to focus on their own notes so it helped to produce a rich sound.

This is how a standard Shakespeare song would e performed:


This is an example of what the UTD performers did:

Performers

The performers were dressed in simply Medieval like clothing. The girls all wore long dresses while the guys had on long tights that clung to their legs. Everybody wore simply clothing which allowed them to blend in with their fellow performers. However, a few of the performers had on a hat or a big necklace in order for them to stand out a little from the choir. This was usually a good indication that he or she had some important role in the piece.

For example, Lakshman Manjunath who played Guiderius in Cymbeline wore a bright blue outfit with a big flamboyant blue hat. Manjunath stood out from the rest of the choir members because he had to. He was the soloist for that piece with only the piano for accompaniment. All eyes from the audience where on him, as well they should be, as he sang every note perfectly.

The choir director/ conductor had small cues which she would give to both her performers and the audience. For the whole performance, her back faced towards the audience. Whenever she did face the audience, it meant that a certain piece of the performance had ended and that it was a place where the audience could/ should clap. She also gave slight and often flawless commands directing the choir members to their new placement flawlessly on the cramped stage.

Audience

The audience consisted of many people from varying age groups. Some were as young as nine years old while others were in their mid 60s. The majority of the audience consisted of college students attending UTD. Throughout the performance, there was virtually no interaction between the performers and the audience. Few people in the audience looked like they had had any experience in this music culture.

Time and Space

The performance took place in the middle of the day on March 27 in the Jonsson Performance Hall. Since it took place in the middle of day and it was the shows second showing, there very few people present. Despite the number of people present at the performance, the crowd gave the performers loud cheers.

Conclusion

The performance of Shakespeare in Song provided a great opportunity for the local community to experience this music culture. The performers put on a unique show that few people get to experience on a regular basis.

Work Cited:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PPzakEsRbeo
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=941FKrYhD_E
Shakespeare in Song Program