As a class, we all got given the song Wilkomen in as our performance piece for that half term. I was previously aware of the musical, Cabaret, but wasn’t familiar with the song. We were shown the song in class. Multiple versions were shown to us, in order for us to see how versatile the role of The MC was. The two versions that stood out to me was the original movie version, played by Joel Grey, and the broadway version where the MC is played by Alan Cumming.
Both Joel Gray and Alan Cumming potrayed the MC in quite different ways. Joel created a creepy atmosphere with his character, using lots of facial expressions and his strong German accent that was almost hard to understand in some moments . Whereas, Alan goes in to playing the MC in a more theatrical and flamboyant way, with an accent which held less depth in order for the audience to have a clear understanding of what is being said throughout the song. With both of these performances in mind, I decided that I wanted to portray my own MC in a creepy yet inviting and enchanting way.
A few techniques I aimed to include throughout my performance was facial expressions, a believable accent and a good stage presence. I made sure that throughout the rehearsal process, I performed in front of the mirror to be able to watch my facials and body language to see what the audience will be seeing. As a class, we have the option as to whether we want to use a cane or not. And I decide to include one in my piece as I want to my hands to have something to do rather than staying still . I knew from reading about the history of cabaret, that the MC was German. So, in order to portray this to the audience, I made sure to have a German twing to each words I was saying. This was one of the most difficult part as I was also having to speak in French and English. I have never had to learn a multilingual song before, so this proved a challenge.
My final performance went well and I was given good critiques. I was told I had a strong start and carried my character consistently throughout the piece.. I also made sure to make eye contact with the audience to further potray the creepy atmosphere that I was trying to put across.. For improvements, I was told that I could of singled out a single person to make more eye contact with and that I lost some of the energy towards the end. However, I was told that I was working at a distinction level.
Both Joel Gray and Alan Cumming potrayed the MC in quite different ways. Joel created a creepy atmosphere with his character, using lots of facial expressions and his strong German accent that was almost hard to understand in some moments . Whereas, Alan goes in to playing the MC in a more theatrical and flamboyant way, with an accent which held less depth in order for the audience to have a clear understanding of what is being said throughout the song. With both of these performances in mind, I decided that I wanted to portray my own MC in a creepy yet inviting and enchanting way.
A few techniques I aimed to include throughout my performance was facial expressions, a believable accent and a good stage presence. I made sure that throughout the rehearsal process, I performed in front of the mirror to be able to watch my facials and body language to see what the audience will be seeing. As a class, we have the option as to whether we want to use a cane or not. And I decide to include one in my piece as I want to my hands to have something to do rather than staying still . I knew from reading about the history of cabaret, that the MC was German. So, in order to portray this to the audience, I made sure to have a German twing to each words I was saying. This was one of the most difficult part as I was also having to speak in French and English. I have never had to learn a multilingual song before, so this proved a challenge.
My final performance went well and I was given good critiques. I was told I had a strong start and carried my character consistently throughout the piece.. I also made sure to make eye contact with the audience to further potray the creepy atmosphere that I was trying to put across.. For improvements, I was told that I could of singled out a single person to make more eye contact with and that I lost some of the energy towards the end. However, I was told that I was working at a distinction level.
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