Musical Theatre Worksheet

Context of the piece – The number we performed ‘Turn it off’ is from the 2011 Musical by Trey Parker and Matt Stone. The creators of South Park and in turn the South Park Musical which was nominated for an Oscar. The musical is satirical of religion and all of the negatives that come with it. Such as: preaching; war and homophobia. Turn it off is specifically about homophobia within the religion and all about repressing it, “Find the box that’s gay and crush it.”

The time the Musical was created – In 2011 this Musical was released. In 2011 a big part of America was that a candidate for presidency ‘Mitt Romney’ was indeed a Mormon. He was incredibly bigoted and this gave it a lot of popularity and attention. The musical was unfortunately not aimed at him due it being in development for seven years however, the timing of it was perfect!

What type of musical is it and what is the style of dance, acting and singing performed in it? – The main style in this musical is camp! The vocal stylings range across the board such as ensemble style ballads with Turn it off. An emotional anthem with I believe and of course, a use of harmonics and soul with ‘You and me but mostly me.’ Dance on the other hand, it ranges creatively from tap to tribal influences.

What impact did the musical have on the industry at the time? – The three most prestigious awards won include: Tony award for best book of a musical; Tony award for best original score and Grammy award for the best musical theatre album. These three awards are very prestigious due to the Grammys being the centrefold of music awards and Tony’s being the centre for performance! The musical is still being performed as strong as ever with over 7 years of fun and grossing over £500 Million. The impact was great due to the controversial topics Meaning more people went to see it and many religious groups buying out tickets so the public couldn’t see it

What skills and techniques are you going to have to focus on to rehearse and perform this piece? – For me, the main area is the ability to sing while dancing. Our choreography may be simple but it is a challenge to have a strong diaphragm while moving about frequently. I believe I understand the character of Elder Cunningham and the number itself.

Strength when learning this piece? – I found a lot of strength in standing and acting like my character. He is very hunched and excitable Which I was able to really bring to my advantage when doing a Dance move as I could be crazy with it and if I slipped a little, that would be fine as it would look in character.

Weakness when learning this piece? – Anything dance related. Dance is my weakest area out of singing, acting and dance.

What have you learnt from this piece and what skills can you take with you to the FMP? – I have certainly learned how to perform in an ensemble while standing out. I have really worked on singing in a more male octave and created some lovely harmonics with Ethan as the top Tenors. I believe I can take my strengths in singing and acting through!