Critique (Once Upon A Mattress)

Cultural Event Critique

The Fort Dorchester High School production of Once Upon a Mattress was both interesting and comical. All of the actors and actresses worked exceedingly well together. They performed with such fluidity and unison that it was quite difficult to tell whether they performed together for a few months or years. All aspects of the musical were first-rate. In fact, there were no parts of the musical that were unlikable or mind-numbing. At some point during the musical, the crew experienced a few technical difficulties. Despite these petite errors, the actors and actresses continued to perform as if nothing ever occurred.

The most interesting aspects of the musical were evident in Act 2 when the audience begins to learn the appalling plot of Queen Aggrabain. Towards the end of the act, the audience celebrates the triumph over the Queen through the knowledge of Winifred and the court.

All of the actors deserve credit for the memorization of their lines and the lyrics of the songs. The musical continued for a little over two hours. Surprisingly, within that time frame, the actors were talking and singing continuously and they rarely made mistakes. Once again, due to the creative mind of Mrs. Winkle, the set took on the view of a real kingdom. The designing most likely required an exceedingly great amount of time and patience.

Overall, the musical was breathtaking and flawlessly performed. It was easily worth five dollars. Anyone who missed the musical missed a humorous production of the world-renowned Once Upon A Mattress.

Ivan Sings Free Choice #4

Ivan Sings

“Ivan Sings,” also known as Andantino, is a compelling masterpiece created by Aram Khachaturian, a Soviet-Armenian composer. The majority of Khachaturian’s pieces are influenced by Armenian folk music. The composition of “Ivan Sings” is written in E flat major, meaning all notes on the staff are natural except A, B, and E. This key creates a truly disturbing, yet beautiful atmosphere. I chose to cover this song because it was one of my earliest emotional pieces that was played before an audience. The composition is also striking because it is the creation of a diverse artist who not only specialized in piano, but also the cello, flute, and violin.

“Ivan Sings” is divided into 10 different stanzas or bars of music. Each bar of music is essentially the fearful yet remarkable voice of Ivan. The notes are slurred into one another to create a powerful message that affects the emotions of both the pianist and the listener. The sound produced by the notes is not a tale of joy, but one of sorrow and lost love. It seems as though the composition is the story of Ivan’s journey of healing after lost love. Surprisingly, the tone is quite similar to that of “Sad Story.”

Khachaturian, one of many great composers, shaped a truly magical piece. Though simple in note arrangement, “Ivan Sings” is the creator of complex emotion. Khachaturian could not have picked any other series of notes to better illustrate lost love and heartache.

Into Darkness (Poem#1)

Into Darkness

The words on the board swirl in a blur.
Beneath her feet the ground begins to tremble.
Her soul in pieces, wrapped and packaged
Given to those who reside over and control
All those things that matter.

What, today, will justify her actions to commit
A sin that gives joy and happiness to so few. But
Brings pain and destruction to so many.
For, what shall she give, to see those few
Seconds of vibrant colors of the sun, moon, and stars.

And so her long, hard journey begins. First
The pain and then a burst of joy and pleasure.
But oh how the pleasure soon began to fade.
She needs it back, she wants it back. The heightened
Pleasure, its all she needs, desires to live.

But with each ounce of pleasure comes a pound of pain.
The feel of an electric current rushes through her legs.
The weight of a cinderblock dropped onto her chest. The
Rooms begins to shake. The lights flicker. And then darkness.

Her parents discover her limp body upon the floor.
What atrocity could cause such an appalling tragedy?
Where did they go wrong? What didn’t they do right?
How could their daughter allow her mind, body, and
Soul slip away into darkness?