Our first trip into the city with our FYS group Broadway and Beyond was Sept 3rd. Thankfully the rain held off! We did A LOT of walking. The whole group was split into smaller groups for a scavenger hunt in the theater district. I was in the "August Wilson" group with Lexis and Alex.
The hunt went on for hours, our destinations were anywhere from 6th-8th avenue and 40th-54th avenue. I think one of the things that surprised me the most was the amount of theaters that there were in the area--I actually didn't expect to see so many. Now, the hunt had some bonuses! If a group could find our Junior Fellow, Andrew, then 10 points would be awarded. Another set of points would be awarded if you could answer a bonus question with a video--my group did BOTH! And were first:
We managed to answer a lot of the questions of the hunt, and we hoped that somehow we would win. We'll see!
At 2pm it was time to meet at the theatre for Follies. The show doesn't actually open until September 12th; this was a preview. We were sitting so high up...but it wasn't that bad. The theatre was dim, there was eerie music/sounds playing, and the stage was so dark, grey, and ragged. It literally looked like an abandoned theatre, and it was a little creepy--but so interesting. It served a well-played contrast to the liveliness that the follies were known for.
I enjoyed the performance. The beginning seemed to drag a little, and there were so many characters to try to keep track of right off the bat. Half way through the second act, the play came to life a little more as the characters became involved in singing and dancing together as a way to reminisce.
The final act, "Loveland" was like a dream world, where we finally got to see the extravagance of the follies world. The costumes were huge and colorful, brilliantly lighting up the stage as flowered or plush arches dominated the background. It was fun, it was cheery, but I think that I expected a little more. There wasn't enough of the grandeur with only one set being dedicated to brilliance.
But still, all I can say is that I can't wait to see what other adventures await Broadway and Beyond.
Way to go, Emilie! You're the first to post a blog entry complete with video clip. Congratulations! By the way, were you surprised to find Andrew "hidden" in such an obvious location? Did you happen to catch the titles of any shows on the TKTS half price board that you'd like to see later this semester?
ReplyDeleteI'd have to check the TKTS board again o see if they were listed, but there are quite a few shows I do wish I could see!
ReplyDeleteAnd yes, I was surprised to find Andrew there! We weren't even looking for him at that point, just stopping for lunch in one of our favorite spots. How lucky THAT was.
EMILIE. This is excellent hahaha. I really like the picture of you, Lexis, and Alex. And the video of when you found Andrew was so funny, what makes it even funnier is the fact that you found him by accident! It seems like you guys really had a lot of fun. But I like that even though I couldn't attend the trip, your blog made me feel like I was there and experience the show a little bit. :)
ReplyDeleteEmilie....
ReplyDeleteThat video is so funny first off, it seems like you had such a fun time in the city i really wish i couldve attended!:( How did you like the show, was it better than ones youve seen before ?
Haha my group ended up taking a lot of videos; like a documentary. We couldn't help it, it was fun! Courtney and Bryanna, hope you guys can make it into the city with us soon. I enjoyed the show, but I'm not sure whether or not it was better than others :)
ReplyDeleteI love how you put this video up. It was soo much fun, even if we didn't win ;) And I completely agree with what you said about the performance. It was very good but it did seem to be lacking more of the grandeur of the Follies days. I was actually expecting a lot of the flashbacks to be done in that sort of style where the whole set changes back its former glory...a sort of Phantom-esk type deal. But I also did like how the flashbacks were more like ghosts...anyways great post XD
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