I will expect a critical essay from all Fine Arts students on the Stephen Sondheim musical A Funny Thing Happened. If you cannot attend the performances at CMHS from Feb 25 - 28, please rent the movie and get the essay completed by Tues, Mar 3.
Follow guidelines that call for
- vivid opening,
- evaluation of the main players,
- timing and clarity of speakers, and
- technical matters,
- audience response, and an
- area(s) in which improvement might me made.
- You may ignore plot summary.
- 15 pts.
A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, says Wikipedia, and a book by Burt Shevelove and Larry Gelbart.
Inspired by the farces of the ancient Roman playwright Plautus (251–183 BC), specifically Pseudolus, Miles Gloriosus and Mostellaria, it tells the bawdy story of a slave named Pseudolus and his attempts to win his freedom by helping his young master woo the girl next door. The plot displays many classic elements of farce, including puns, the slamming of doors, cases of mistaken identity (frequently involving characters disguising themselves as one another), and satirical comments on social class. The title derives from the line that vaudeville comedians often used to begin a story: "A funny thing happened on the way to the theater".
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