The Dominion Prep School Theatre Arts class will perform Charles Dickens' story Oliver Twist on Thursday, May 26 at 1:15 PM in the sanctuary at Dominion Academy. We hope you can make it!
BACKGROUND INFORMATION This play is based on the novel Oliver Twist, which was the second novel written by Charles Dickens. He published the story in Britain in monthly installments from 1837 to 1839. Much of this novel is based on Dickens’ own life experiences working in a shoe polish factory as a young boy. He was concerned about the treatment of the families that lived in the workhouses and wanted to bring to light the sad things going on in Victorian England - things that polite society was trying to ignore. This version, however, is from a series called “Playing with Plays,” which takes classic stories like Oliver Twist and turns them into a melodramatic farce. While the basic plot and a few of the lines remain true to the book, much of the plot is over-the-top silly. As Dickens himself wrote, “It is the custom on the stage, in all good murderous melodramas, to present the tragic and the comic scenes, in as regular alteration, as the layers of red and white in a side of streaky bacon.” WHY OLIVER TWIST? I chose this play because it gives young students the opportunity to interact with classic literature in a fun, silly way. The author who adapted the story had one goal in mind: "To instill the love of acting and Charles Dickens into the kids. And when you have a passion for something, they will start to teach themselves, with or without school." This year the theatre arts class has had a lot of fun with death scenes, silly romances, workhouse slavery, and zombie apocalypses. At the same time, they've learned about body language, the rehearsal process, ensemble work, plot structure, comedic timing, vocal production, public speaking and language skills, all of which have applications far beyond the stage. If you have any of the following items, please let me know!
This semester we are going to focus on one play: a children's version of Charles Dickens' Oliver Twist. We held auditions at the beginning of the semester. Rehearsals have begun and the students are really enjoying learning about vocal production, physicality, and ensemble work. Additionally, Alyssa Brembeck is working with the students on accents. More specifically the standard British accent (also called "Received Pronunciation") and the Cockney accent. The performance will be on Thursday, May 26 at 1:30 PM.
HOMEWORK FOR NEXT CLASS: Next week we are going to celebrate Charles Dickens' birthday! (It's technically this Sunday, but shhhhhh....) The students have been asked to research the author of Oliver Twist and bring THREE FACTS about him that they find interesting (where/when he lived, what he looked like, what other plays he wrote, anything about his family life, why he is so famous, etc.). Each student will share what he or she learned as we celebrate with games and fun! Dominion's prep school Theatre Arts class will perform a children's version of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol a week from today. As Dickens himself put it: "It is good to be children sometimes, and never better than at Christmas, when its mighty Founder was a child Himself.”
Hope to see you in the sanctuary at Dominion at 1:45 on Thursday, December 17! A week from today (December 10) is the final dress rehearsal for A Christmas Carol. Students MUST:
The performance will be on Thursday, December 17 at 1:45 PM in the sanctuary at Dominion. Hope to see you there! The show is cast and we are set to rehearse Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol! Students were given a highlighted script to take home. Their assignment for next week is the following:
TENTATIVE REHEARSAL SCHEDULE:
The performance will be on the last day of school before Christmas break: December 17 at 1:45 PM. Next class (November 5) the Theatre Arts class will hold auditions for its next play: A Christmas Carol. Students were given the script to take home today - they should read through it and come prepared to read a scene or two for auditions next class. Mrs. Brembeck and I will cast the show and we will begin rehearsing right away!
WHY CHARLES DICKENS? Mr. Charles Dickens was a beloved 19th Century British author who penned classics such as Oliver Twist, David Copperfield, Great Expectations, and, of course, A Christmas Carol. According to Les Standiford, author of The Man Who Invented Christmas, Dickens wrote A Christmas Carol at a time when he was really struggling financially and desperate to revive his career: “Faced with bankruptcy, he was contemplating giving up on writing fiction altogether. Instead, he pulled himself together and, in six short weeks, wrote a book that not only restored him in the eyes of the public but began the transformation of what was then a second-tier holiday into the most significant celebration of the Christian calendar,” (p. 6). |
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