1 comments about Musical Scene Study : The Musicals of Rodgers and Hammerstein (Study Guide) (Study Guide).

1. As my daughter is studying musical theater, this item will be just right. She has looked it over and is very excited about getting back to college and putting it to use. I would be very interested in any other products of this kind!

2 comments about Score Reading: A Key to the Music Experience.

1. As a Composition and Conducting major, it's a nice, well-written book which reveals a way how to you read a score while listening to it. For real Score Reading purposes ("hacking the Orchestral Score on the piano), I wouldn't recommend it so much because although it consists of excerpts, it's not practical enough because of the format. Probably di Lassus, Bach Chorales and later the "Kunst der Fuge" are still the best way to improve your reading of the clefs before you can start reading a full score using the clefs for the transposition. For everybody who's not a conducting major, it could be a very useful book as an introduction to score reading or actually score listening



2. This book belongs in the hands of every aspiring orchestral musician, conductor, and avocational music-lover. Ambitious high-school students and conservatory undergraduates will especially appreciate the clarity and concision with which Dickreiter (through Pauly's fine translation) illuminates the labyrinth of abbreviations, symbols and page layout details for deciphering orchestral scores. Best of all, the book answers most basic questions about instrumentation (including foreign terminology, clefs and transpositions), performance practice and history, without forcing the reader to hunt down the information in several other sources.

   Musicians searching for practice material in reducing scores at the piano will not find it in this book, but they will find a handy reference with a sound review of orchestral history and instrumentation. Aspiring conductors will find a valuable introduction to their craft and all readers will appreciate the clarity of the text which conveys information without the baggage of elitist condescension or that chatty hand-holding which bloats many mass market "how to" or "dummies" books. Several of the score examples employ a format (found in the Norton Scores) that highlights prominent melodic lines with gray shading. This illustrates the dynamics of score reading very clearly for novices.

   The chapters are as follows: 1) Introduction, 2) Types of Scores, 3) The Look of a Score, 4) Scores and Their History, 5) Reading a Score - Hearing a Score, 6) Examples for Practicing Score Reading, 7) Orchestras and Conductors, 8) Instrumentation and Score Reading: Suggestions for Further Reading.

No comments about No Legs, No Jokes, No Chance: A History of the American Musical Theater.

1 comments about Scene Painting Projects for Theatre.

1. I just love this book. I am not artistic and still draw stick people but with the instructions in this book, I was able to paint a background that turned out beautiful.

No comments about Eight Plays for Children: The New Generation Play Project.

3 comments about Confessions of an Actor: Laurence Olivier an Autobiography.

1. some men are born for greatness..others aspire to it. Laurence Olivier was a man born for the stage and for Shakespeare. He found his fame through the Bard's plays, speaking the words as if as naturally as he were thinking them at the moment. This beautiful book takes you inside his world of make believe and never talks down to you but you see the world as he sees it. He did it with grace, elegance and a touch of class. He writes of his life long friendship with Ralph Richardson, John Gielgud and other notable stars. Read this book, then watch some of his finest films, "Wuthering Heights", "King Lear", "Richard III", "Marathon Man", "Spartacus", "The Entertainer", "49th Parallet". Truly one of generations legendary actors.
   
   "I don't know what is better than the work that is given to the actor -- to teach the human heart the knowledge of itself." [January 1970]



2. Sir Laurence Olivier imparts to us the intimate details of his personal life, before he became the great Shakespearean actor we all know so damn well. He shares his reflections on what he did in his life and what he regrets. No one could do this with more grace and humor than the Master Of The Bard. Rated PG for thematic elements and some language.



3. Fantastic information in this book full of Wisdom. Interesting to hear about his struggles and his adventures. He also appreciated his friends. God Bless this Great Actor!!

1 comments about Plays for the Theatre (Wadsworth Series in Theatre).

1. I purchased Plays for the Theatre at Amazon for a fraction of the cost of the bookstore price. Although it took longer for the shipment to arrive, it was worth the wait. This book was exactly what I needed for my 6-week class and I still use it to read the classic plays.

5 comments about Poetical Dictionary.

1. Lohren Green knows how to put words together beautifully; he distinguishes himself in his unusual ability to take them apart first, one by one. He starts from acrobatics, ends at zoological garden. Some of my favorites: clumsy; doodle; doom; hand; pixel; room. Example: "veer"
   [etymolgy, then four poetic definitions]
   
   1. swerves
   at an abruption
   the heaviness of
   momentum moving forward
   (see inertia, tractor-trailer, thrust), or
   heads decisively aslant;
   
   ....



2. This is a surprisingly light book of poetry. I would have expected any other 'poetical dictionary' to be unmeasured, overly heady, weighty. In Lohren Green's book it is clear however that the writer has an uncanny, exhilirating knowledge of words and of what he calls their 'cosmos'. This makes it delightfully easy and light to read, like putting on a summer dress for the first time after a long English winter.



3. Not being used to reading poetry I found the Poetical Dictionary really amazing and approachable. Poems are structured in the form of a dictionary (pronunciation, etymology, and definition), so you always have a general idea of what the poem is trying to convey. And the best thing is that you get to experience words in a totally new way that makes complete sense but that you hadn't thought about before. Reading this book feels like being at a cool party surrounded by interesting people.



4. With great wit and intelligence, this book refreshes the traditional dictionary by revealing the interior life of words--the distinctive styles and contours that lie beneath their denotative meanings. Regular dictionaries tell you what words mean; this one shows you how they feel, and, particularly, how they delight. Rising to the challenge when the going gets toughest (e.g., abstract entries like "affect" and "concurrence"), the author is completely at home in crafting this alternate lexical universe. Front and back matter, including an illuminating preface (not to mention marvellous illustrations), complete the dazzling effect. Keep it next to your Webster's and OED.



5. This small but potent tome is pure joy, a delight through and through and through once more for good measure. Each entry proffers an apropos universe: liquid flows; bleak is a bit barren; bulwark, rather difficult to navigate; oyster is, well, briny; etc. This is a dictionary as it should be, meaning and sense seamlessly wed. Startlingly smart, thorough throughout (etymologies, pronunciations, charts and tables all included), at times quite beautiful, always joyful: this book offers language lovers a supreme luxury.

1 comments about Six Yuan Plays (Penguin Classics).

1. "Six Yuan Plays" is an anthology whose contents are translated by Liu Jung-en, who also contributes an introduction. The book brings together plays from 13th and 14th century China. The contents are as follows: "The Orphan of Chao," a revenge story by Chi Chun-hsiang; "The Soul of Ch'ien-nu Leaves her Body," a paranormal love story by Cheng Teh-hui; "The Injustice Done to Tou Ngo," a supernatural story of injustice by Kuan Han-ch'ing; "Chang Boils the Sea," a magical love story by Li Hao-ku; "Autumn in Han Palace," a political love story by Ma Chih-yuan; and the anonymous "A Stratagem of Interlocking Rings," a story of political intrigue.

   Throughout this anthology, I was reminded of the popular film "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon," which also evokes a long-ago era of Chinese history. Many of these plays also reminded me at times of Shakespearean drama. These plays are richly populated with a diverse body of human characters: lovers, villains, emperors, warriors, court officials, and more. There are also a number of supernatural characters such as a Taoist immortal and the Divine Dragon King. Liu Jung-en's English versions of these plays are beautifully written, and contain some really poetic language.

   This anthology's marvelous mix of courtly intrigue, romance, magic, folkloric elements, and tragedy is really stunning. Together, these plays constitute an enchanting body of literature. I recommend this collection both for literature classes and for individual readers.

2 comments about Choreography: A Basic Approach Using Improvisation.

1. Just started reading this book. so far so good.Well written and edited and presented. It helps with the creative process. Haven't tried out the excercises to see how they'll work though.



2. I found this book very helpful! This book has photos of stage dos & don'ts, and covers everything from movement exploration, to how lighting and costumes effect the dance. Everything from coming up with the dance, to auditioning other dancers to stage set up, to performance is covered. This is a "hands-on" book, with lots of exercises for the dancer to play with. In the rear of the book is forms and checklists that will help make choreography and booking a lot easier. Well written out, and lots of photos to illistrate the writer's meaning. Since in dance, a picture IS worth a 1,000 words.