On Sunday November 20, at 2 pm I saw High Point University’s production of Curtains. The play had Hayworth theatre’s first and second floors packed with a lively audience. The audience was mostly filled with family consisting of parents, grandparents, and younger children. Some parents and older members of the audience had bouquet of flowers in their hands, probably to give to the cast or crew members after the show. I would consider the show house half full because the majority of the audience was laughing along with the play, seemed intrigued at compelling parts, and were swaying along with the musical numbers. Another interesting point I noticed about the audience is everyone seemed very intrigued by the play. Very few people got up during
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The director uses multiple story lines to wrap the play all together. For example, one aspect of the play is the murder mystery plot. Another aspect of the production is the love story between the homicide detective, Lt. Frank Cioffi and the understudy of the lead, Nikki Harris. One more plot of the Curtains is the effort to get the play, Robbin’ Hood of the Old West, to make it to Broadway. Carmen Bernstein, who wants the play to get to Broadway the most, for reason not discovered until the end of the play, Is the glue that holds the cast together. She is determined to get the play to Broadway without even knowing her husband, Sydney, blackmailed each character in the play to be a part of this production. The director’s way of using multiple plots intertwined in one story, keeps the audience on their feet. The blocking of the crew was also quite notable. Doug Brown’s vision of having the director of the Robin Hood play to be conceited, yet humorous also moved the paly along nicely. It added an unexpected humor to what one would define as a serious plot. Also, the idea of making the detective torn between solving a homicide while also adding input into the play gave the …show more content…
The music was catchy and fit the mood of the scene, casting was spot on and costumes reflected that time period. The costume designer, Gay Hensley, did a particularly good job with distinguishing costumes meant for Robin Hood and costumes meant for the characters rehearsing. Gay Hensley, also added in pajamas to show that the cast was actually sleeping at the theatre. The lighting designer’s job also stood out to me. Spotlights were particularly noticeable during this play. The cast would talk directly to the team working spotlights to tell them where to go. When Lt. Cioffi was pointing out individuals that were blackmailed and could be a possible suspect, the production crew did a great job showing only that character with a spotlight and darkening the rest of the stage. For another instance, when Carmen was singing the song the theatre is a business she told the spotlight to blink twice, and right on cue, it did. All actors’ voices were audible for such a big theatre, which is thanks to the microphone that the sound designer, Russel Hill, fitted. The property master made sure the play had props for Robin hood and for curtains. For example, to portray an ocean the actors shook cloth, while other actors pretended they were in a ship with oars. The gigantic ship at the end of the play was very impressive because it authentically displayed a real ship. Finally, the choreographer, Lindsey Howie, did a
The director uses multiple story lines to wrap the play all together. For example, one aspect of the play is the murder mystery plot. Another aspect of the production is the love story between the homicide detective, Lt. Frank Cioffi and the understudy of the lead, Nikki Harris. One more plot of the Curtains is the effort to get the play, Robbin’ Hood of the Old West, to make it to Broadway. Carmen Bernstein, who wants the play to get to Broadway the most, for reason not discovered until the end of the play, Is the glue that holds the cast together. She is determined to get the play to Broadway without even knowing her husband, Sydney, blackmailed each character in the play to be a part of this production. The director’s way of using multiple plots intertwined in one story, keeps the audience on their feet. The blocking of the crew was also quite notable. Doug Brown’s vision of having the director of the Robin Hood play to be conceited, yet humorous also moved the paly along nicely. It added an unexpected humor to what one would define as a serious plot. Also, the idea of making the detective torn between solving a homicide while also adding input into the play gave the …show more content…
The music was catchy and fit the mood of the scene, casting was spot on and costumes reflected that time period. The costume designer, Gay Hensley, did a particularly good job with distinguishing costumes meant for Robin Hood and costumes meant for the characters rehearsing. Gay Hensley, also added in pajamas to show that the cast was actually sleeping at the theatre. The lighting designer’s job also stood out to me. Spotlights were particularly noticeable during this play. The cast would talk directly to the team working spotlights to tell them where to go. When Lt. Cioffi was pointing out individuals that were blackmailed and could be a possible suspect, the production crew did a great job showing only that character with a spotlight and darkening the rest of the stage. For another instance, when Carmen was singing the song the theatre is a business she told the spotlight to blink twice, and right on cue, it did. All actors’ voices were audible for such a big theatre, which is thanks to the microphone that the sound designer, Russel Hill, fitted. The property master made sure the play had props for Robin hood and for curtains. For example, to portray an ocean the actors shook cloth, while other actors pretended they were in a ship with oars. The gigantic ship at the end of the play was very impressive because it authentically displayed a real ship. Finally, the choreographer, Lindsey Howie, did a