is a stage art with a long history. With its excellent live experience, gorgeous stage design, exquisite song movement and smooth storyline, musical theater has successfully attracted generations of audiences. However, compared to movies, musicals have inherent dissemination disadvantages, resulting in a much smaller audience base than the former two. This article hopes to take you to understand musicals and introduce you to how to open musicals.
Incomplete Guide to Musical Theatre
Musical Theatre ≠ Opera
This may be regarded as an introductory course to musical theatre. Whether in the barrage at station B or in the NetEase cloud comment area, it is not difficult to see dialogues such as "This opera is good" and "This is a musical, not an opera". Indeed, although music is inseparable, musicals and operas are very different.
Although both musicals and operas are "singing", both have their own advantages in singing . The opera adopts bel canto. The classical aria of and the recitative are the center of opera singing. In contrast, the singing method of musicals can be said to be full of flowers and various tricks : The story of "The Phantom of the Opera" takes place in an opera house in Paris, depicting a gothic version of "beauty "And the beast", the opera sings in "play in play" are naturally bel canto; "Chicago" tells the crime story of several women in the feasting sex and the city, and directly put a jazz band on the stage ; "School of Rock" tells the story of a teacher with musical dreams leading the students to form a band. The process is full of dynamic rock music; and the current popular play "Hamilton" (Hamilton) is even more so Using popular rap elements, the two parties who are debating in Congress can take out their microphones and have a Rap Battle in the next second...Of course, in general, a musical often mixes various styles of music, but in general Said that the singing method of musicals is more popular and more diverse.
In addition, the performance focus of musicals and operas is also different. The top priority of opera is music . The focus of audience appreciation is the gorgeous movement and the superb singing skills of the actors, while the storyline is just a background that connects different music. In this case, the storyline of the opera is often relatively simple . For example, the opera "Turandot" only tells a simple story of "the princess uses a riddle to beckon her relatives". Even if you don't understand the Italian used in singing, only understanding the plot summary will not hinder your appreciation of the opera's melody. .
and musicals are different. To make an unsuitable analogy, the musical is more like a drama with added music. "Storytelling" is the core of the musical, and music plays a role in promoting the development of the story. Therefore, musicals often have a complete and smooth storyline, with well-designed development and climax. For example, the musical "Les Misérables" (Les Misérables) is based on Hugo's long masterpiece of the same name, bringing to the stage the stories of the protagonists' suffering and salvation, the pursuit of love and freedom, which gathered in the historical torrent of the French Revolution. If a musical lacks storytelling, no matter how good the music is, it is difficult to get a good evaluation. For example, the sequel "Love Never Dies" (Love Never Dies), written by Weber, the creator of "The Phantom of the Opera," although the music is equally brilliant, its more "dog-blooded" plot has caused mixed reviews on the play. It is precisely because musicals have a strong storyline, such as "The Sound of Music", "Les Miserables", "Chicago", "Mamma Mia!" "(Mamma Mia!), "West Side Story" (West Side Story) and other musicals were able to be adapted into movie scripts and shine on the big screen. At the same time, there are also musicals such as "Mean Girls" and "Frozen" born out of movies, showing another possibility on stage.
The difference in focus between musicals and operas also leads to different requirements for actors . For opera, the actor’s singing skills and voice are always in the first place, while appearance and acting skills are second; but in musicals, the actor’s singing skills and acting skills are important factors that need to be considered when choosing a cast.. To give a more extreme example, the original cast of the protagonist Alexander Hamilton in the musical "Hamilton", Lin-Manuel Miranda, has a rather average voice (he was responsible for the composition of the Disney movie "Moana", which you can distribute on Disney A demo of his audition was found in the second half of this album), but as the creator of this show, with his in-depth understanding of this role, he still became the first cast of this role and won with this He was nominated for Best Actor in a Musical for the Tony Award, the highest award in American drama that year.
Because of the high requirements of actors in musicals, Broadway has contributed a large number of outstanding actors to Hollywood. "Pitch Perfect" heroine Anna Kendrick4, "Uncle Barney" Neil Patrick Harris5 in "My Mom and Dad's Romance", "Mom" Cristin Milioti6, "Wolverine" Hugh Jackman7, "Frozen" Actress Aisha’s dubbing Idina Menzel7, Christopher’s dubbing Jonathan Groff8, even the villain Hans’ dubbing Santino Fontana11, and the heroine Rachel’s actor Lea Michele9 in "Glee" are all on Broadway music. Their careers were left behind in the play. At the same time, many Hollywood actors also take part in musicals as an important means of tempering their acting skills. "Sister Stone" Emma Stone once played the heroine in the Broadway layout of the classic musical "Cabaret" (Cabaret).
is not only that, but musicals also have a broader range of subjects. Compared to classical operas, reality and imagination can both become the story content of musicals. In the world of musicals, there are not only classic love stories like "Roméo et Juliette" (Roméo et Juliette), and "Rent", a pioneer work that focuses on marginalized groups in the real society; Fairy tales such as "Girl" also have "Ms. Veron" (Evita), a historical biography about a generation of legendary women in Argentina. If you like black humor, you might as well learn about the unique "The Book of Mormon" in the musical, and experience the deep meaning behind the hilarious story; if you have also felt lonely, you can go to the "Philharmonic" The two gold medal composers of "City of the City" joined "Dear Evan Hansen" (Dear Evan Hansen), look at the reflection on the gap between people in the Internet age.
The purpose of this paragraph is not to allow you to accurately judge whether it is a musical or an opera based on the title of the play after reading it, but to use this common misunderstanding to eliminate most people's potential misunderstandings about musicals. The musical has never been high and low, and it needs to be watched. musicals are diverse and inclusive, telling the story of each group. No matter your gender, age, orientation, no matter your favorite music style, content theme, everyone can find resonating stories in musicals, and they can find content that suits their own hearts.
Musical ≠ Movie
As a stage art, musicals also have a unique charm that is completely different from that of movies.
First of all, musicals are always new and full of vitality. The movie has completed its life cycle after shooting. The actors in the same role are relatively fixed, and there is not much room for replacement. The musical is very different. Under normal circumstances, a musical actor will only perform in the same play for one to two years, after which the role will be played by other actors. What's more, in order to ensure that the repertoire can continue under any circumstances, the musical has a complete substitute system: some actors in the backing dancer (Ensemble) also serve as the main role candidate (Understudy): each candidate While completing their own performance content, actors also need to learn the roles of the digital leading roles, and be able to be on the stage as any of these roles at any time. At the same time, there will be alternate actors called Swing in the backstage, and each of them needs to learn the roles of several backing dancers and be able to be on stage at any time. Some repertoires will also have S who only serves as a substitute for the protagonist and does not participate in daily performances.tandby. Therefore, the cast of musicals has considerable fluidity.
is the so-called "A thousand hamlets in the eyes of a thousand readers." Every actor has a different understanding of the same character, and thus has different treatments in the singing, emotional expression and physical movements of the music, leaving behind Own characteristics. Even the same actor may choose different performance methods in different performances because of his different emotions. This also brings many possibilities for the live effects of musicals. Even if it is a drama, the experience of watching it twice may be different. For example, "The Phantom of the Opera" has been born for more than 30 years, with 28 official male protagonists in the West End and Broadway alone. Phantom, who possesses peerless musical talent, but is trapped in the underground world because of his ugly appearance. Because of the different actors, he may be passionate like an indomitable lion, or full of charm in the dark; facing the heroine Chrissy Christine's feelings also have different expressions of passion and pleading. This is beyond the reach of movies.
In addition, musicals also have the unique advantage of live performances. The immersive live experience brings a better appreciation atmosphere. Compared with the movie theater screen, the live performance on the stage is undoubtedly more immersive. Together with thousands of audiences on the scene, you can revel in the story created by the musical, applaud for the wonderful performance, and be moved by the delicate storyline. At the end of musicals such as "Kinky Boots" (Kinky Boots), "Yiwu Rental" and other musicals, the live audience will often follow the actors on stage, beat the beat with both hands, and thoroughly integrate into the storyline.
is different from movies, musicals don’t use the lens to choose what the director wants to present. While the protagonist is performing, other characters and backing dancers will also have their own roles. You can focus your attention on the protagonist or carefully observe the performance of other characters. For example, when the heroine Christine in "The Phantom of the Opera" left the troupe's female lead singer, she temporarily acted as a substitute for audition, she became nervous and restrained at the beginning, and then became free and easy; accordingly, the members of the troupe behind her , From the initial uneasy whispering to a joyous nod. Sitting in the front row, you can appreciate the details of each actor's performance; in the back row, you can watch the overall design of the theater stage. After the performance is over, you can also go to the stage door (Stage Door) to the backstage to the outside of the theater to exchange and take photos with the protagonists in this scene and ask for autographs.
Compared with movies, musicals have a more free way of expression between the square inches of the stage. "Hamilton" only uses a large turntable and simple tables and chairs to show the history of the American Revolution and the founding of the nation. The opening song spanned about 20 years of history, fully explaining the background of the story and the protagonist’s youth; the spoiler-like inner monologue, on the contrary, gave the audience more suspense and expectations. When the turntable is reversed, time will also flow backwards; the ambient light is off, and you can listen to the voice of the character. The venue and the setting do not limit the expressiveness of the musical. Compared with the film's effort to restore the real setting, the freehand style of the musical is more eclectic and unconstrained.
However, this does not mean that the musical set is crude. On the contrary, every musical has its own innovation and unique live effects. The ever-changing light effects of "Hamilton", combined with the precise positioning of the actors, bring a breathtaking visual feast; the heroine in "Cinderella" has a momentary change of dress, and Aisha in "Frozen" follows The costume changes with the theme song "Let It Go" all condense the designer's ingenuity. Repertoires such as "Wicked Witch" and "Princesses" are also expensive and have beautiful visual effects. Gorgeous costumes, brilliant lights, unique stage, and exquisite props are waiting for every audience to discover.
is not only that, compared to musical films, musical actors still have an excellent singing level. Comparing the albums of musicals and movies of the same name, you will obviously feel the difference in singing skills between the actors of the two. Compared with the common studio recordings and mouth-to-mouth gestures in movies, live concerts of musicals are undoubtedly more contagious and help actors express their emotions 12. With the live band of the musical, it is a wonderful listening experience.
If you also want to experience the beauty of musicals, you might as well followBelow, start your first musical journey.
Incomplete Guide to Musical Appreciation
Where to See
Without considering other languages for the time being, London’s West End and New York Broadway are undoubtedly the two major centers of world musicals. If you are planning to travel to the two places, there are naturally many repertoires to choose from. In addition, many musical troupes also have irregular national tour programs, and some theaters in other cities may also have local resident troupes. For example, "The Phantom of the Opera" is based in London's West End, Broadway and Las Vegas.
In China, there are not many excellent Chinese musicals to choose from because the related industries are still to be developed. But this does not mean that it is impossible to enjoy musicals live in China. Nowadays, a batch of musicals come to China every year and touring in many first-tier cities. For example, "Chicago" and "Ms. Belon" all have domestic tour arrangements this year, "Come From Away" will be touring China next year, and "The Phantom of the Opera" has announced a tour from the tour to the production of the Chinese version. Series plan, and "Cat" is almost routinely touring China every year. If you focus on French musicals, works such as "Romeo and Juliet", "Rock Red and Black" (Le Rouge et le Noir), and "Notre-Dame de Paris" also have a high frequency of tour. As the audience of domestic musicals continues to grow, there will only be more and more musicals touring in China. Therefore, if you are in a first-tier city in China, you also have the opportunity to enjoy musical works at your doorstep.
Information source
Watching dramas abroad
If you plan to watch dramas abroad, the official Playbill website is a relatively official and comprehensive information channel. As the provider of Broadway musicals, Playbill's official website covers Broadway, Off-Broadway, West End and tour repertoire information, which can be described as comprehensive.
Click on the specific repertoire, you can also see their schedule. Most of the shows are 8 shows a week, two of which are two shows a day, and one day is off. In addition, you can also view the cast information, program duration and other information here.
In addition to Playbill, Broadway.com is also a good channel to learn about Broadway dramas. In addition to routine performance information, you can also see interview videos of many Broadway stars on the website, or follow the Vlog to glimpse backstage stories.
In addition, the news section of the Broadway World website is also recommended. You can ask related questions here, or view other posted posts. If you have a certain cast you want to see in particular, you may wish to ask him in this section if he is on vacation.
If you are in another city and have no plans to travel in the near future, compared to browsing the vast list of website repertoires, following local theaters on Twitter and Instagram may be a more worry-free and labor-saving way, and you can also see local in time Tour information.
Domestic dramas
Due to the relatively scattered domestic theaters, there is currently no official unified information platform. However, we still have many channels to understand the situation of domestic musical tour. The first thing
would recommend is Douban.com. After selecting the target city, we can check the local musical tour schedule in the "Drama-Musical" section. In addition to checking performance times and specific theaters, Douban.com also provides a link to purchase tickets for you to use.
In addition, if you want to know more about the reputation of a certain musical, you can also search on Douban City to get a rating page similar to Douban movies. Here, you can learn about the historical versions of musicals, and check the short reviews and drama reviews of Douban users. It should be noted that since this page does not distinguish between different cast versions of the same musical in the scoring and evaluation, the scoring may have more overall significance and cannot guarantee the quality level of a specific version of the performance. For example, "The Phantom of the Opera" has a high score of 9.5 in Douban City (not the movie version of Douban movies), and it is indeed worthy of this score as one of Weber's masterpieces. But when I personally watched it in Los Angeles, I encountered the so-called "new director, new production" tour version, which finally workedFruit a mess. Therefore, when viewing the review on this page, you need to carefully screen the review version.
In addition to Douban City, ticketing parties such as Damai are also a more practical channel. Select the destination in the Damai App, and then click the "drama opera" option (the classification of Damai here is obviously problematic), you can view the local dramas and musicals that can be purchased.
Compared with Douban City, Damai’s advantage is that it lists all repertoires that have been fully determined and can be purchased directly, while Douban City has some repetitive and uncertain shows. However, Damai did not distinguish between drama and musical, which brought certain troubles to the drama selection.
In addition to checking the confirmed tour schedules, sometimes we also want to know some new trends in domestic musicals. At this time, it is a good choice to pay attention to the introduction parties such as Wenguang and Seven Acts Life, as well as the Weibo and official accounts of local theaters. In this way, you can learn about the introduction of the show you are looking forward to in time, so you can plan early and buy tickets at a more cost-effective price.
Buying Tickets
Buying Tickets Abroad
Generally speaking, there are two recommended ways to buy tickets for watching dramas abroad:
buy tickets at the official website;
buy tickets at the theater box office (Box Office). Both methods have their pros and cons. Buying on the official website is more convenient, and you can also select seats online, but you need to pay a certain handling fee; the ticket office has lower labor costs, but it is generally impossible to select specific seats as accurately as the official website. You can only choose the general area and Fare range.
In contrast, I personally recommend buying tickets on the official website when conditions permit. The ticket price of the same show may fluctuate at different times. The official website can be used to compare ticket price changes at different times more easily. In addition, buying tickets on the official website can also better control your seat position. Since most theaters have two floors, the price of the second floor is often relatively low. Therefore, for the same price, choosing the front row on the second floor may have a better view.
No matter which way you buy tickets, you must pay attention to the following:
Most musical tickets are non-refundable , and you must confirm the date before purchasing. If you are really not at ease, you can purchase additional insurance on the official website to obtain a full refund in the event of an accident within the insurance coverage;
generally, do not purchase tickets from other agents. These agency websites often have high handling fees and may have the problem of being denied admission by the theater;
is best to buy tickets as soon as possible after determining your viewing date. Many popular dramas will sell out before the show begins. Although on-site tickets may be discounted, if your travel time is limited, it is best not to risk not having tickets available. After
buys tickets on the official website, the ticket collection methods are often more diverse. Generally speaking, you can choose to mail or pick up the ticket yourself. However, if the repertoire you purchased was redirected to the Ticketmaster website at the time of purchase, then you can also choose a more convenient way to get tickets: electronic tickets.
After choosing this ticket collection method, you can download the Ticketmaster application in App Store and other app stores, and you can view the tickets you purchased after logging in. On iOS devices, you can also add tickets to the Wallet App for easier entry.
Domestic ticket purchases
In China, there are also many ticketing channels to choose from: theater ticket offices, theater/organizer official websites, and ticketing websites such as Damai are all feasible methods. Moreover, there are more diverse discounts when buying tickets in China.
Take Damai as an example, open the show you want to buy, click "select seats to buy tickets", and then select the show you want to buy. Generally speaking, the ticket price of the show on weekdays will be lower than that on weekends. If conditions permit, you can consider choosing to watch it in the evening on weekdays. You can choose a column of fare grades at will, and you can still make adjustments on subsequent pages.
After seat selection and payment, Damai will send the paper tickets by courier, usually within 1 to 2 days. Before buying tickets, you can check these possible discounts:
student ticket. Some theaters (such as Beijing’s Capital Theater) will beStudents provide discounted student tickets. You can pay attention to relevant information on the theater’s official website and public account before purchasing tickets;
early bird tickets. Some organizers will provide early bird tickets on the official website, and you can enjoy discounts when you purchase them before the specified date. If the show you want to watch has just announced its tour plan, you may wish to go to the corresponding website to check if there is a corresponding discount;
package. Some shows will offer discounts when purchasing multiple tickets. It is worth noting that you must check the seat arrangement of the purchased ticket before purchasing, so as to avoid the situation that the package seat is too far behind;
cultural benefit activities. Take Beijing as an example, follow the "Beijing Wenhui Card Official Service Number" to receive free tickets, discount coupons and other benefits from time to time.
More preferential methods, you can check this Zhihu answer. Although the question is about drama, ticket purchases for musicals can also be a reference.
watch the show
no matter where you watch the show, when watching the show, there are some things worth paying attention to:
musical theatre has no requirements for costumes (No Dress Code). Of course, you can also choose a relatively formal dress according to your own mind, and it will never appear obtrusive in the theater. However, given that most musicals will bring more intense mood swings when watching, you must consider your emotional sensitivity when making up.
theaters generally start to check tickets one hour before the show, preferably before the show starts. Arrive at the theater 30 minutes or earlier. If you still need to pick up the ticket from the ticket office, you can take a certain amount of time in advance. Late arrivals may be required by the theater to stay outside the venue for a period of time before entering the venue;
must know in advance whether the theater is allowed to carry cameras to avoid the inconvenience caused by the security check. In my personal experience, Broadway theaters generally allow cameras, but theaters in other cities (such as Los Angeles) may not allow this practice. Food from outside cannot be admitted;
theaters generally have stalls selling around in the lobby, and the prices of these surroundings are the same as the official website of the musical. Therefore, if you have the idea of picking up your hands, you might as well buy it directly at the theater, and you can also avoid the extra shipping costs brought by the official website purchase;
don't forget to receive the show. Broadway staff will distribute the newsletter when guiding you to your seat, and some theaters will choose to distribute it in the lobby. If you wish to bring an extra book for your friend as a souvenir, the staff will generally express their understanding;
musicals may change actors temporarily. If the alternate actor has confirmed his appearance before the start of the performance, you will receive the corresponding card replacement notice in the venue; if the alternate actor appears after the second act, you will hear the broadcast at the end of the intermission;
go early Restrooms and drink less water. A typical musical is about two hours in length, divided into two acts. Although there is an intermission of 10 to 15 minutes, the restrooms of the theater tend to be overcrowded during this period. Therefore, it is wiser to go directly to the bathroom after entering the venue, and avoid drinking a lot of water during the viewing;
do not take photos or videos during the performance. Regardless of whether the theater is allowed to carry a camera, using a camera or mobile phone to take secret photos is undoubtedly a seriously inappropriate behavior. After being discovered by the staff, you will most likely be asked out of the theater. It is particularly noteworthy that sneak shots in theaters are illegal in New York State;
turns off the phone. Since theater seats are much "shabby" than theater seats, the distance between adjacent seats is quite close. Therefore, even if the phone is turned on silent, the vibration may still disturb the surrounding audience. Since the iPhone’s Do Not Disturb mode also allows repeated incoming calls to ring by default, the safest way is still to turn on the airplane mode or directly turn off the phone;
After the performance is over, you can go to the Stage Door to wait for the cast of the show. However, meeting with the cast is not part of the musical show, so there is no guarantee that you can meet the expected actors every time. If the actors have guests visiting the backstage, or the crew has other activities, it may cause the actor/all cast meeting to be cancelled. Generally speaking, the stage door frequency of the evening performance will be higher than the afternoon performance.
The experience of watching the musical
live without going out is wonderful, but there are very few people who can soak in the theater every day. For most of us, official photos and recorded albums are good choices for enjoying musicals at home.
Generally speaking, most well-known musicThe drama will release its own recording album. Under normal circumstances, they are both Broadway (OBC, Original Broadway Cast) or London West (OLC, Original London Cast) first edition cast recordings, but there are also different versions of musicals available. Generally speaking, these albums can be found on all major music platforms. Despite the lack of visual pictures, you can still experience its excellent music.
and some musicals have gone a step further on the basis of the album, launching official DVD videos, such as "Les Miserables" 10, "The Phantom of the Opera", "Yoshiya Rental", "Boots" and so on. In this case, you can generally find their official photography works on video websites such as station B, and enjoy them as an introductory repertoire. Unfortunately, due to various factors, most Broadway musicals do not have an official photo to choose from6. Above
is a simple "Guide to the Pit" for musicals. In addition to searching for the corresponding video at station B, you can also click here to view the Apple Music playlist (Spotify / QQ Music) that I am listening to. In subsequent articles, I will also further recommend some personal favorite musical works in a complete way, hoping to attract more people into the world of musicals.
