Dr. Marc Reynolds Performing Arts Studio
Sing Easier - Perform Like A Pro
Now that you understand the patterns you are looking for, go back through these videos and notice the difference between when they follow the pattern and when they don’t and how that changes how believable and engaging the scene is.
I will give you some hints of things you might notice or try to look for or listen to but each of these videos could be discussed as a lesson in itself.
[Read more…] about Video Examples Breaking Down the use of LNOS and MMCLast Note or Syllable
When it is your character’s music your eyes should begin to shift on the last note or syllable of every phrase of music you sing or that is played.
[Read more…] about LNOS The Formula for Making Music and Acting Work NaturalisticallyOne “eye-dea” per phrase is a way to help you remember that we show that we are having a new idea by shifting our eyes. It is also to remind you that just like we have one music phrase per text phrase we should have one body language phrase per phrase.
This means that if we shift the direction of our eyes more than once in a phrase, or don’t shift our eyes to start to show what we are talking about next then the body language, music, and text will no longer be communicating the same thing. Consequently, the audience will subconsciously identify that something is off and disconnect from the performance.
[Read more…] about One “Eye-dea” Per Phrase – No More and No LessPhrases are the building blocks of communication. There are markers in different kinds of phrases that tell us when a phrase is starting, building in tension, releasing tension, and ending. You can find research and literature that discusses prosody and taxonomy for both music and text. The question we are exploring here is, “How does what is on the page or coming from our mouth in the form of music or text translate to what we do with our body?”
We can be thinking amazing wonderful things but if you can’t show it to the audience with what you do with your body then the audience cannot see it. If the audience can’t see it then, as far as performing is concerned, those amazing thoughts mean nothing to the audience. Since body language accounts for the lion’s share of communication, especially in live performance, we should at least give it a proportional amount of attention as we practice. Let’s talk about how to bring the phrases on the page to life in your body.
[Read more…] about What is there in a phrase?Cinematography changed the live entertainment business. Our audiences are more visually perceptive than ever before. They are used to watching super realistic fast-paced action where the music and action are perfectly timed and matched. Where audiences were used to using their imagination to fill in the blanks or heighten the experience of live theater they now expect singers not only sing well but act as well if not better and all during a live broadcast. All the ways that cinematography continues to change the live performance arts are impossible to identify. The important point is that it is here to stay and there are some amazing lessons we can learn from the movie industry.
What can we learn from the top blockbuster movie producers who have the time and money to get the timing just right? A lot! Imagine if for a live performance you could rewind, edit, independently slide the music around and adjust the timing of moments until they fit just right. Live performance doesn’t have this luxury, but moviemakers do. In this section, we will learn how to both see and apply some of the principles that emerge from watching these movies so we can better reach today’s audiences.
[Read more…] about Lessons Live Performance Can Learn From Blockbuster Movies.