Brigham Young University's Theatre Education Database

·         Have each student take out a piece of paper

·         Play a clip from each song brought in by the students

·         Have the students write a small 2-4 line description of what they think the person who brought that CD in is like (nothing negative or derogatory, simply a personality description)

Discussion

·         Once you’ve gone through all the CDs, share. Have one or two students share their thoughts about each song and the one who brought it in

·         After going through them all, have each CD be matched with its owner and compare the students’ impression to the reality.

·         What does this teach us about music in performance? (It can reveal character, setting, plot sometimes, mood, etc)

Instruction

·            Aristotle mentioned music in the poetics because each Greek tragedy involved a great deal of singing and dancing from a chorus

·            Today we have the modern day musicals where singing is the main way it conveys character and plot

·            What other ways is music used OUTSIDE of a musical? (DESIRED POTENTIAL ANSWERS:  pre-show/post-show; in between scenes; short clips during important moments like in movies, etc)

Activity

·         Break into groups of 4 or 5

·         Play a sound clip of a certain type of music for each group,  giving them 10-15 minutes to create a tableau of a situation where the music applies

o   Suggested music clips “Beethoven’s 9^th Symphony”, “Happy Little Working Song” from Disney’s “Enchanted”, “Highway to Hell” by AC/DC, “Variations on a Familiar Theme” by Mozart, “Screaming Infidelities” by “Dashboard Confessional”, anything from “Jock Jams”, or any other varied selection of music

Discussion

·         After each group presents, have them explain the situation surrounding the tableau

o   Worth 20 pts total

§  15 pts – thoughtful consideration of how the clip and scene coordinates

§  5 pts – participation

·         Allow remaining students to share their thoughts and opinions.

o   How effective was the music in revealing character, setting, plot, mood?

o   What worked? How could it be improved?

·         Reemphasize the importance of music and how powerful it can be in enhancing a performance.

Tableau Activity - 20 pts

*NOTE: In preparation for this lesson, have each student select the song they think best describes their life and burn it onto a CD to be brought to class (provide each student with a blank CD if possible). The students MUST NOT write ANYTHING on the CD, nor share their selection with classmates.  It’s a secret!  Simply burn the one song onto the CD.