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Study Guide for Educators

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Study Guide for Educators PRESENTS Study Guide for Educators Sponsors: Music by ARTHUR SULLIVAN The Melsheimer Families Libretto by W.S. GILBERT PCPA – Pacific Conservatory Theatre Brad & Jacquie Hinds Study Guide Complied by DANIEL DENNERT Table of Contents Welcome to PCPA/Theater Etiquette…………………………………….. 3 How to Use This Guide………………………………………………….... 4 Production Team and Cast………………………………………………... 5 Elements of the Story Plot Synopsis……………………………………………………… 6 Types of Opera…………………………………………………… 6 Comedy and Opera Terminology…………………………………. 7 Themes and Key Words…………………………………………... 8 Elements of the Production About the Authors……………………………………………….... 9 D’Oyly Carte Opera Compnay……………………………………... 10 Design Concept……...……………………………………………... 10 Activities Discussion Questions……………………………………………... 11 Preshow: Words Walk the Plank………………………………….... 11 “Do it again! But FASTER!”………………………………………... 12 The Modern Day Match……………………………………………. 12 2 Land Ho! PCPA on the Horizon! A NOTE TO THE TEACHER Thank you for bringing your students to PCPA at Allan Hancock College. Our top priority is to provide an enjoyable day of live theater for the audience. We offer you this study guide as a tool to prepare students prior to the performance, to prompt discussion, critical thought, and creativity before and after the performance. THE PIRATE CODE Notable behavior is a vital part of theater for youth. Going to the theater is not a casual event. It is a special occasion. If students are prepared properly, it will be a memorable, educational experience they will remember for years. 1. A fully-fledged pirate should always be with the students! Ushers are available to help with seating. We suggest that teachers sit in between students to help maintain order on the deck. 2. Please remind our young apprentices that we do not permit the following onboard ship: food, gum, drinks, smoking, hats, backpacks, or large purses disruptive talking disorderly and inappropriate behavior (stepping on/over seats, throwing objects, etc.) cell phones or any other recording devices light up or noise making objects (including shoes) patrons should put cell phones on silent or vibrate 3. Before attending the show, teachers should take time to remind students of the following about a live performance: Sometimes we forget when we come into a theater that we are one of the most important parts of the production. Without an audience there would be no performance. Your contribution of laughter, quiet attention, and applause is part of the play. When we watch movies or television we are watching images on a screen, and what we say or do cannot affect them. In the theater the actors are real people who are present and creating an experience with us at that very moment. They see and hear us and are sensitive to our response. They know how we feel about the play by how we watch and listen. An invisible bond is formed between actors and a good audience, and it enables the actors to do their best for you. A good audience helps make a good performance. PCPA welcomes you as a partner in the live theater experience from the moment you take your seats. We hope that your visit will be a highlight of your school year! 3 HOW TO USE THIS GUIDE This study guide is a companion piece designed to explore many ideas depicted in the stage production of The Pirates of Penzance to enhance the theatrical experience. The Pirates of Penzance is present in a lot of pop-culture, although students aren’t always aware that TV shows or musical parodies are referencing Pirates. The show informs audience members of late 19th Century culture and also asks questions about duty, allegiance, love, and honesty. Be prepared to be transported back in time and then wonder if things really change. The guide has been organized into three major sections: Elements of the Story Elements of the Production Activities Teachers and group leaders will want to select portions of the guide for their specific usage. The discussion questions provided are meant to provoke a line of thought about a particular topic. Frequently, the answers to the questions will initiate a process of exploration and discovery of varied interpretations sometimes deviating from original ideas. It is recommended that these thoughts be encouraged and discussed. This can be as insightful and rewarding as the adventurous experience that The Pirates of Penzance creates onstage. There are lots of references to Pirates in popular culture, especially Fun Fact: although Gilbert and Sullivan, television! Here are a couple of examples: the writers of Pirates of Penzance were from the United Kingdom, some of their work has become synonymous with American patriotism. With Cat-Like Tread is from Act II of Pirates. New lyrics were written to the melody and it became known as Hail, Hail, the Gang’s All Here, a march frequently played during the 4th of July and other patriotic holidays. Look it up! Star Trek: Next Generation The Muppets These TV shows will sometimes use music directly from The Pirates of Penzance. Other times the writers change the lyrics but imitate and exaggerate the style. This is called a parody. Most of the time parodies are comedic. Gilbert and Sullivan themselves were known for making parodies (so these references are like parodies of a parody). One of the most famous parodies was done by a man named Tom Lehrer who set all the elements of the periodic table to the tune of I am the Very Model of a Modern Major General. 4 Music by ARTHUR SULLIVAN Libretto by W.S. GILBERT CREATIVE TEAM Director/ Choreographer Brad Carroll Music Director Callum Morris Voice & Text Director Matt Koenig Scenic Design Jason Bolen Costume Design Eddy Barrows Lighting Design Jennifer ‘Z’ Zornow Sound Design Elisabeth Weidner Assistant Director Nicholas Kowerko Production Stage Manager Jahana Azodi* CAST OF CHARACTERS The Pirate King George Walker Samuel Will Hoshida Frederic Alex Stewart Major-General Stanley Andrew Philpot* Sergeant of Police Michael Jenkinson* Mabel Natalie Graham Kate Molly Wetzel Edith Brittany Law Isabel Courtney Reece Ruth Jacqueline Hildebrand PIRATES AND POLICE Blake Brundy, Tyler Matthew Campbell, Devin Cunningham, Cameron Eastland, Garrett Gibbs Spencer Hamilton, Zachary Hasbany, Mitchell Lam Hau, Garret Lawrence, Zach Johnson, Adam Mantell Antwon Mason, David Miller DAUGHTERS Quinn Farley, Annali Fuchs, Madisen Hayes, Irene Platt, Caroline Whelehan * Member, Actors’ Equity Association 5 The Run Down: a Pirates synopsis The Pirates of Penzance is the story of Frederic who, as a young lad, was mistakenly apprenticed to a band of pirates. On this, his 21st birthday, with his apprenticeship complete, he is compelled by a “sense of duty” to forsake the piratical life and, with his nanny, Ruth, ventures out into the world. He soon encounters a bevy of beautiful maidens, all of them daughters of Major-General Stanley, and is instantly smitten with one in particular, Mabel. The pirates arrive, seize the girls and threaten them with immediate marriage. But the Major-General begs for their release, claiming that he is an orphan and that, without them, he would be left all alone. The pirates, orphans themselves, are sympathetic to his plea and relent. The Major-General, deeply troubled by this ruse (he is not an orphan) fears the consequences. Frederic arranges for a police force to defend the Major-General against the avenging pirates. Unfortunately Frederic soon learns that, being born on February 29 in a leap year, he has really only had five birthdays and is now bound to fulfill his apprenticeship for another 63 years. Against Mabel’s ardent pleas, “sense of duty” compels him to rejoin the pirates. A battle ensues. The pirates appear victorious until they are charged to yield “in Queen Victoria’s name.” Love of queen trumps piratical prowess and soon all are set on the path to happy ever after. A Night at the Opera Types of Opera Opera comes in many forms. There are grand operas, operas written in German, Italian, French, and Russian, operettas, pop operas, and what have become known as Savoy operas. Savoy operas, named for the D’Oyly Carte Opera Company’s Savoy Theatre where many were first performed, are comedic and a highly stylized form of Opera written during the Victorian period. Gilbert and Sullivan pioneered this new genre. Time has not been kind to Savoy operas and Gilbert and Sullivan’s work is all that is left of an art from that has all but faded from memory. Savoy operas now tend to be lumped together with operettas—operas with dialogue scenes in addition to the complicated musical numbers. These dialogue sequences began getting longer and longer over time. Operettas became the predecessor to the modern American musical: a play with both dialogue (or “book scenes”) as well as sung music that helps to tell the story. Musicals continue to thrive today as one of the most popular forms of art and entertainment. 6 Comedy: Parody, Farce, or Satire? That is the Question. Gilbert and Sullivan shows are considered to be masterworks of comedy. Comedy can be broken down into a few sub-categories: parody, farce, and satire; all of these are simply types of comedy. Parody imitates and/or mocks a specific person or thing in an exaggerated manner to make things funny. Farce uses unlikely and exuberant situations with buffoonish characters to create ludicrous and silly jokes. Satire exaggerates ideas or people to ridicule and demonstrate their absurdity and provide social commentary. Typically, satire makes fun of government and attempts to initiate change. So what type of comedy is The Pirates of Penzance? There are satirical elements in Pirates – however, this humor is not meant to be harmful or provide social commentary. Gilbert and Sullivan rely on mock-heroes and wordplay for their comedy. They use well known icons of their time such as the Bobby (a British policeman), Pirates, and Generals and make them anything but what the audience expects.
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