EPQ Example Written Report - passmoresfalcon.com · By Leah Bartram Level 3 Extended Project Qualification Candidate Number: 2012 2 1. INTRODUCTION 1.1: BACKGROUND Currently, I am

ByLeahBartram Level3ExtendedProjectQualification CandidateNumber:2012

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1. INTRODUCTION1.1:BACKGROUNDCurrently,IamstudyingMusic,DramaandDanceatGCSElevel,andthesearethesubjectsinwhichIexpressmost interest in; therefore, conducting further research in these subject areas will provide me with anintellectuallystimulatingstudyproject.Toaddtothis, Ialsoexpressimmenseinterest inHistory,whichIamalsostudyingatGCSE;henceforth,IamlinkingtheaforementionedsubjectareastoHistorybyresearchingthehistorical conventions ofmusical theatre, aswell as itsmodern conventions. Extending uponmy theatricalknowledgewillenhancemyunderstandingofmusicaltheatre’scontextandhistory,readyingmeformyfuturecareerpathinwhichIintendonteachingDrama.

1.2:OVERALLRESEARCHAIMSANDINDIVIDUALRESEARCHOBJECTIVESThe purpose of my research is to identify which conventions of musical theatre contribute to a musical’senjoyment and impact. Henceforth, my overall research question is: “What conventions enhance theenjoyment and impact of musical theatre?”. In order to draw the strongest possible conclusion, I haveconstructedthreesub-questionstoaidthetriangulationofmymethodsandactasmyresearchobjectives:

1. Whatarethehistoricalconventionsofmusicaltheatre?2. Whichkeyconventionsenhancethetypicaltheatre-viewer’senjoymentofmusicaltheatre?3. Aremodernconventionsofmusical theatremoreeffective inenhancingamusical’senjoymentand

impactthanitshistoricalconventions?

Afterproducingaliteraturereviewofusefulandrelevantresearchwhichstudiesthehistoricalconventionsofmusical theatre, Iwill use this discourse analysis as a basis to assistme in conducting a questionnaire andundertakingacomparativeanalysis.

2. LITERATUREREVIEWThis chapter will review literature articles surrounding the topic of musical theatre and its historicalconventions,enablingmetocomprehendhowthesefactors influencetheenjoymentand impactofsuchanextensivelyadmiredformoftheatre.Withtheknowledgeaccumulated,thisfurthermorewillassistmeintheidentification of musical theatre’s historical conventions within performances, allowing me to detect theirprevalencewhenconductingmycomparativeanalysis.

2.1: ‘A SHORT HISTORY OF OPERA’ – FROM THE GREENSBORO OPERA

WEBSITEFoundunder the ‘Opera First-Timers’ section, ‘A ShortHistoryofOpera’was created to target an audiencewith limited knowledge of opera, introducing the reader to opera’s origins. The article describes opera’sadvancements–beginningduringtheRenaissanceandfollowingitsdevelopmentsthroughtothe21stCentury– commenting on how opera originated from the revival of Greek Theatre during the Renaissance, by“heightening text by creating solo melody or monody which would enhance natural speech” (GreensboroOpera,2009-2013,pg.1).Readingon,itisapparentthatoperaismorerecentlyacombinationofbothdramaandoperaticexpression(GreensboroOpera,2009-2013).Thisinformationisrelevanttomyfirstobjective,asoperadepictsexpressiveproclamationthroughvocalisation–similarlytomusicaltheatre–thusmakingitanapparent historical convention. In this pieceof literature, it is evident that research fromother articles has


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beenincorporated:referencestonames,datesandhistoricaleventshavebeenidentified.Thestrengthsofthisarticle are that it gives an informative, factual summary of the origins of opera that is appropriate for thetargetaudience.Intermsoflimitations,thefinalparagraphissignificantlylessexplanatory;itgivesnoexplicitdetailregardingoperainthe21stCentury.

2.2: ‘THE FIRST MUSICALS: BALLAD OPERAS’ – FROM THE VICTORIA ANDALBERTMUSEUMWEBSITE‘TheFirstMusicals:BalladOperas’–fromthe‘FirstMusicals’pageontheVictoriaandAlbertMuseumwebsite– focusesonabranchofopera thathadanenormous influenceonmodernmusical theatreasweknow it:balladoperas.Thissourcecontributedsignificantlytomyresearchandtheachievementofmyfirstobjective;itdiscussesoneofthemostobvioushistoricalconventionsofmusicaltheatre,asthissub-genrecombinessonganddialogue–musicalsdirectlymimicthisformat.ThisfactualpiecedescribesTheBeggar’sOpera,writtenbyJohnGayin1728,andits influencesoncontemporarymusicals:“thefirstmusicalshowtomixdialoguewithsongs” (Victoria andAlbertMuseum, 2016, pg. 1). Consistently, this article refers to historical research; forexample,animageofFrankCelli(aballadoperaactor)isaccompaniedbyacaptionanditsmuseumnumber.Theuseofvalidresearch,andthefactthatthisarticlewasfoundonawell-knownmuseum’swebpage,impliesthatthissourceislikelytobetheoneofthemostreliableofalltheliteraturethathasbeenreviewedinthischapter,thusmakingitsreliabilityandinformationoneofthearticle’sstrengths.Althoughthisdoesn’taffectitsreliability,thearticleisstilllimited,asdoesnotofferageneralisedexplanationastowhataballadoperais;itonlyfocussesononeexampleofballadopera,meaningthatthesourceisrelativelysubjective.

2.3:‘THEINVENTINGOFOPERA’–FROMBIGBANGSBYHOWARDGOODALL‘The Inventing of Opera’ discusses the political opinions of opera, taken from Goodall’s book, Big Bangs.Similarlytotheaforementionedarticles,thissourceisrelevanttomyresearchquestionandfirstobjectiveasitprovides further evidence that opera is a historical convention ofmusical theatre through the connectionsmadewiththetwogenres’dramaticrepresentationofemotion.Goodallbeginsbymarvellingovertheardourofanoperaticperformance,describingthesuddennessinwhichoperaemerged:“itburstexplosivelyontothesceneinthesixteenthcentury inaflurryof inventionandcontroversy”(Goodall,2000,p.54).However,thisstatement contradicts my first reviewed article, ‘A Short History of Opera’ (from the Greensboro Operawebsite),asthispiecedescribesthegradualdevelopmentsofopera,implyingthattheformationofoperawasnotassuddenasGoodallclaimsthat it is.Consideringthispieceisanintroductiontoa largerchapterabouttheoriginsofopera,thereisnoevidenceofacademicresearchdisplayed;however,fragmentsofinformationareincorporatedintothispieceofliterature,possiblyretrievedfromothersources.Intermsofstrengths,thispiece of literature captivates and urges the researcher to read on and discover opera’s origins, due to theexcitement and love for opera depicted. However, limitations could include the fact that this introductoryarticle containsopinion-based statements, implying that its contradictoryarticle, ‘AShortHistoryofOpera’,maybemorereliablethanthissource,asitcontainsconsistentresearch.Nevertheless,onemightarguethatbecausethissourceisapublishedbookwrittenbyanexpert,itisstillreliable.

2.4:‘ANCIENTROMANDRAMA’–FROMDRAMAONLINEDiscussing a brief summary of ancient Roman drama, ‘Ancient Roman Drama’ was retrieved from DramaOnline, anonlinedictionaryof theatre.This sourcepredominantlydescribeshowRomandramawasheavilyinfluencedbyGreektheatre,sayingthat“mostoftheplaysseemtohavebeenadaptationsofGreekoriginals”(Law,2011,pg.1).However,thisarticleisseeminglynotrelevanttomyresearchorobjectivesasitdoesnotmakeanynameablelinkstomodernmusicaltheatre,implyingthatitisnotatheatricalhistoricalconvention.In terms of strengths, this article is concise, making the consumption of the information a simple task.


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However,thispieceislimitedduetoitslackofresearch;therearenoreferencestootherformsofresearchormethodology,makingthesourceunreliableandnon-academic.

2.5:‘THEGREEKCHORUSDYNAMICINANCIENTANDCONTEMPORARY

THEATRE’–BYCELINEDELCAYRE‘The Greek Chorus Dynamic in Ancient and Contemporary Theatre’ – an essay written by Delcayre – wasparticularlyrelevanttomyresearch;itmadedirectlinkstotheGreekChorus’sinvolvementwithinmodern-daymusical theatre, thus regarding the theatrical dynamic as a historical convention of musical theatre andassistingthecompletionofmyfirstobjective.ThesourcedescribesthedramaticconventionofGreekChorus,both inancientGreeceandtoday’stheatre.Delcayrecommentsonthehistoricalconvention’s influencesonmoderndaymusical theatre:“Membersofamusical theatrechorususesongandmovement,much liketheGreeks”(Delcayre,2016,pg.1),showingfactorsofGreekchorustohaveevidentabundancewithinchorusesseenintoday’smusicals.ThisarticlehasimplementedcaptionedphotographsfromtraditionalGreekplays,aswellascontemporarytheatre;theuseofvisualresearchallowedmetoidentifythesimilaritiesbetweenGreekChorusinancientGreeceandthechorustoday,makingthisoneofthearticle’sstrengths.Despiteitsrelevancetomyresearch,thesourcecontainsnoreferencesorpublisher,makingitunreliable–thisishenceforthoneofthearticle’slimitations.

2.6:‘MORALITYPLAY’–FROMENCYCLOPÆDIABRITANNICA‘MoralityPlay’,anonlinearticle, focussesonmoralityplays in theMiddleAges; it states thatmoralityplayswerea formof “allegoricaldramapopular inEurope” (TheEditorsofEncyclopædiaBritannica,2009,pg.1),showingthat theseplayscontainedvirtuousmessagesbehindtheirexteriorstorylines.Concisely, thisarticledefineswhatamoralityplayis,makingthisoneofitsstrengths.Althoughthearticlementionssomemoralityplays, therearenoreferencestootherpublishedformsofresearch, limitingthesource’sreliabilityandthusactingasaweakness.Thisarticleisrelevanttomyresearchasmoralityplaysfundamentallylinktoargumentsregardingpolitical,socialandcultural issuesthatareportrayedthroughmusicaltheatretoday,thusimplyingthatmoralityplaysarehistoricalconventionsofmusical theatrethatmayserveasanenhanceroftheatricalimpact.Moreover,thishelpsmetoachievemyfirstobjective.

2.7:‘THEATREHISTORIES:MUSICALTHEATRE’–BYPHILLIPZARRILLI,BRUCEMCCONACHIE,GARYJAYWILLIAMSANDCAROLFISHERSORGENFREI‘TheatreHistories:MusicalTheatre’,obtained fromCambridgeUniversity’sFacultyofEducationLibrary,wasextremelyrelevantandbeneficialasapieceofsecondaryresearchformyresearchquestion.This isbecausethe entire book outlined all historical conventions of varying genres of theatre and how they can beintertwinedwith theatreof today; from this, Iwas able to accumulate sufficient research from the chapterentitled ‘Musical Theatre’ in order to gain more of an understanding of how musical theatre’s historicalconventions may be reflected in modern-day theatre. Through this article, I discovered the historicalconventionof Jingxi –originating in19thCenturyChina–which “relatesmostly romantic andmelodramaticstories through a mix of song stylised speech, spectacular dance, pantomimed action, and sometimesacrobatics” (Zarrilli, P.et al, 2006, pg. 335).Otherwise known as BeijingOpera (Zarrilli, P.et al, 2006), thisarticle also provides evidence of opera as being a historical convention of musical theatre due to itsassociationswithmodernconventions(suchasdancingandsinging)andobviouslinkswiththepre-researchedhistorical convention of opera. This article has evidently utilised substantial research due to its consistentreferencingofothersourcesthroughout;henceforth,oneofitsstrengthsisthatthissourceisreliableduetoits in-depth research to provide dependable evidence (the piece was also written by four theatricalintellectuals,meaningthattheyhavemuchexperienceinthefieldofperformingarts).However,thisarticleis


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slightly limited as it does not refer to the current developments ofmusical theatre as influenced bymoremodernisedconventionsoftheatreafterthe1970s.

2.8:‘AREWELIVINGINANEWGOLDENAGEOFMUSICALTHEATRE?’–BYJENNIFERASHLEYTEPPERThe online article, ‘Are We Living in a New Golden Age of Musical Theatre?’, discusses the successes ofnumerableproductionsoftoday’smainstreammusicaltheatre.Byarguingthat“theartformitself,alongwithitspopularity,hashitnewheights”(Tepper,2016,pg.1),thesourceisrelevanttomyprojectandcontributestomythirdobjectiveduetotheimplicationthatmodernconventionsplayapartinenhancingtheenjoymentand impact of the musical overall. Furthermore, the article gave me an insight into examples of musicaltheatre’s modern conventions; the musical defied theatrical expectations by expanding to the film andtelevision industry (Tepper, 2016), thus utilising new technology such as recording equipment and lighting.With the prevalence of these modern conventions as musical productions continued to develop, musicaltheatrehadanincreasinglylargeimpactonmodernaudiences.Thesource’sstrengthisthatitissupportedbysubstantialresearch,suchasprofessionalphotographs,quotationstakenfrominterviewswithdirectors,andstatistics.Thoughseeminglyreliable,thearticleislimitedbythelackofcounterargumentagainstitsquestion;ostensibly,itisbiased.

3. METHODOLOGY3.1:RESEARCHDESIGNFormymethodology, I will be accumulating both primary and secondary resources; I ammaking use of adiscourse analysis, a comparative analysis, and a questionnaire. Triangulationwill be achieved through thesecondary evidence obtained from my reviewed articles (the discourse analysis) and primary evidence,consisting of others’ personal opinions (from the questionnaire) and my own theatrical analysis of twothought-provokingandspectacularmodernmusicals(thecomparativeanalysis).

3.2:STUDYCONTEXTMyfirstprimarymethod,aquestionnaire,willtakeplaceinasecondaryacademylocatedinHarlow,Essex. Ichosethisparticularlocationduetomyfamiliaritywiththestudentsandstaff;agreatdealofthemexpressaninterest in the performing arts, so this providedmewithmany potential participants to identifywhich keyconventionsofmusicaltheatreenhancetheirenjoymentoftheperformanceoverall(significantlycontributingtothecompletionofmysecondobjective).Furthermore,myquestionnairewilltakeplaceoveramonthsoasto provide the participants with time to respond, whilst enabling me to still gather the required data foranalysisintime.

Secondly, my comparative analysis will involve the viewing of the live musical,Matilda, in the CambridgeTheatre,London.Relevantly,thisisthehometotheatricalprofessionandaptitudeinBritain,meaningthatthemostprestigiousandpublicly-impactingtheatricalproductionsareperformedhere.Furthermore,Iwillalsobewatching a film version of Rent. Comparing the historical and modern conventions displayed in theaforementionedmusicalswillenablemetoidentifywhichofthesemayhavebeenmoreeffectiveinenhancingthe musicals’ enjoyment and impact among the public eye (leading me to accomplish my third researchobjective).Thisstudywilloccurwithinamatterofhours, throughwatchingbothmusicalsandrecordingmyfindings.


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3.3:SAMPLINGFormyquestionnaire,Ihavemadeuseofrandomsampling;thisensuresthatIobtainarangeofopinionsfrom

twentyparticipantsofdifferentbackgrounds,gendersand theatricalexposure.The range in these factors is

important as it will enable me to have an insight into people’s varying opinions of theatre and ability to

identify both historical and modern conventions within musicals, meaning that they are less likely to all

gravitatetowardsasingularandpossiblyunreliableconclusion.Limitationsofmyquestionnairesamplecould

bethatparticipantsforgettotakethequestionnaire,asIhavemerelyemailedthelinkforthemtocompletein

theirowntime.Consequently,Iamatriskofreceivingfewerresponsesthanmyidealsamplesize,whichcould

makemyfindingslessreliableduetothedecreasedrange.

3.4:PRESENTATIONOFDATAANALYSISQuantitativedata–accumulatedthroughthemultiple-choicequestionsfeaturedonmyquestionnaire–willbe

presentedinpiechartscreatedautomaticallyonGoogleForms.Fromtheresponses,Iwilldrawtrendslinking

theatrical conventions with enjoyment and impact, writing summarising paragraphs. Qualitative data –

obtainedfrommycomparativeanalysis–willbeinitiallycolour-codedsoastoclearlyextractkeythemes(the

differingconventionsofmusicaltheatre)frommynotes(takenwhilstwatchingbothmusicals).Afterthis,my

noteswillbeelaborateduponandrefined,andwillbepresentedinacolour-codedtabletoclearlysectionand

highlightmyfindingsforeachthemewhilstmakingaclearcomparisonbetweenthetwomusicalsthatIwillbe

analysing.

3.5:PROCEDUREInitially,Iconstructedadiscourseanalysistoformthebasisofmyresearch,regardingthehistorical(andsome

modern)conventionsofmusicaltheatre.Myprocedureforeachothermethodofresearchisasfollows:

QUESTIONNAIREFirstly, using my secondary research provided by my literature review, I formulated questions linking the

enjoyment–inothers’opinions–ofmusicaltheatretoitsmodernandhistoricalconventions.Then,Iwillask

permissionoftwentymembersofthechosensecondaryacademy,bothstaffandstudents,topartake inmy

questionnaire.Afteremailingittothosewhoarewillingtoparticipate,thequantitativedataretrievedfrommy

resultswillbeplaced intopie charts so that trends– regarding the linksbetweenenjoymentand impactof

musical theatre and its modern and historical conventions – can be drawn from them. Furthermore,

undertakingaquestionnairewill significantly contribute to thecompletionofmysecondobjective,as itwill

giveaninsightintowhichkeyconventionsofmusicaltheatreenhancetheenjoymentoftheperformancefor

thetypicaltheatre-viewer.

COMPARATIVEANALYSISMycomparativeanalysiswillbeinstigatedbywatchingtwomusicals:onelivemusical(Matilda)andonefilm

musical(Rent).Thiswillenablemetocomparethedisplayedconventionsofmusicaltheatreineachmusical,

andhowthismayaffecttheaudience’senjoymentandimpact.Theenjoymentandimpactofmusicalswillbe

partiallyjudgedbymyquestionnaireresults;whicheverconventionsgainthemajorityvoteforenhancingthe

participants’enjoymentofaperformancewillsignifywhichofthesehavealsoincreasedthemusical’simpact,

as thequestionnaireparticipants’appreciationof these identifiedconventionssuggests that theyhavebeen

allegorically and theatrically affected by the overall performance. By linking the prevalent theatrical

conventionsidentifiedwithinboththequestionnaireandcomparativeanalysis,Iwillbeabletointerpretwhich

specificconventionshavethelargestinfluenceontheenjoymentandimpactofmusicaltheatreoverall.Whilst

watchingthemusicals,IwilltakenotesoftheconventionsthatIobserve(aidedbymyknowledgeaccumulated

frommyliteraturereviewfindings).Afterthis,Iwillcolour-codeeachidentifiedconvention,beforedisplaying


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my finalqualitative results ina table toenableeasycomparison.Thecomparisonbetween themodernandhistoricalconventionsthroughtheanalysisoftwopopularmusicalswillcontributetotheaccomplishmentofmythirdobjective;whencombiningmyquestionnaireresultsandcomparativeanalysisresults,thecorrelationbetween the abundance of theatrical conventions and themostwidely-appreciated conventions amongst alargesamplewillenablemetodecipherwhethermodernorhistoricalconventionsofmusicaltheatreenhancetheenjoymentandimpactofthetheatricalartform.

3.6:QUESTIONNAIRESTRENGTHSThe strengths ofmy questionnaire are that it is a simple way of accessing people’s thoughts and feelings;askingthecorrectquestionswillmeanthatIobtainadetailedrangeofanswers.Additionally,questionnairesarenottime-consuming,meaningthatyoucancarryoutmultiplequestionnairessimultaneously,thusenablingyoutoreceivemanyresponsesinlittletime.ThisishelpfultomyresearchasitmeansIwillbeabletoprogressquickerwithmydataanalysisduetothefactthataquestionnaireisrapidlyconducted.

WEAKNESSESTheweaknessesofmyquestionnairearetherisksofsocialdesirability;participantsattemptingtobesociallydesirablewhentakingthequestionnairemayleadtoinaccurateresults,astheyaren’tbeingentirelyhonest.Inanattempttoavertthis,inmyquestionnairedisclaimerIcouldstronglyrequestforallparticipantstoanswercompletelyhonestly, thus increasing theaccuracyof thismethod.Furthermore,questionnairesdonotallowparticipantstoclarifyquestionsinthecaseofambiguity;ifaparticipantdoesnotfullyunderstandaquestion,theymaymisinterpret and henceforth answer inaccurately. To prevent this, I could give the participants ahardcopyofthequestionnairewhenaskingfortheirconsenttotakepart;thisway,theycanbrieflyreadoverthequestionsandrequestclarificationifneeded,henceforthavoidingmisinterpretations.

3.7:COMPARATIVEANALYSISSTRENGTHSThe strength of thismethod is that the use of a sample (twomusicals) will enableme to produce a clearcomparisonbetweentwosources.Tworesearchpointswill thereforeprovide inter-raterreliabilityregardingtheusageoftheatricalconventionswithinthesetwomusicals.

WEAKNESSESTheweakness of a comparative analysis is that it is relatively subjective; the researchmaybebiased if themusicalsarederivedfromsimilarbackgroundsandhenceforthcollaborativelyfavouraspecificconventionoftheatre over the others. To improve this, I could compare a larger range of sources, differentiating in timeperiod and cultural setting, to get a more well-rounded observation of sources which thus increases thereliabilityofthismethod.

3.8:ETHICALISSUESOutofrespectfortheparticipants,Iaskedtheirpermissiontopartakeinmyquestionnairebeforeemailingitto them, in order to ensure that they’d consented to the submission of their theatrical opinions andpreferences for the use of my methodology. Additionally, I included a disclaimer at the beginning of thequestionnaire to assure the participants that their responseswere confidential; although the questionnairedoesnotinciteanysensitivesubjects,theirconfidentialityofopinionshouldbetakenintoconsideration.


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3.9:RESEARCHLIMITATIONSFirstly,myquestionnairemaybe limitedbyculturalbias;allof theparticipantswereofBritishethnicityandbasedinHarlow,Essex.Thismaymeanthattheyshareasimilarideologyofwhatdefines‘enjoyable’musicaltheatre as they are likely to have been exposed to similar forms of theatre (both through the screen andperformed live).Henceforth, thisweakens the reliabilityofmy resultsdue to the culturally limited rangeofresults; it is difficult to generalisemy sample due to the fact that they are all from the same location. Toreducethis,Icouldmakethequestionnairepublicandpromoteitonseveralplatforms–suchassocialmedia–thus expanding my sample nationwide, or possibly even internationally. Therefore, people from differentethnicalbackgroundswillbeabletostatetheirdifferentopinionsoftheatreasinfluencedbytheirculture.Asaresult,manypeopleofdifferentculturalbackgroundsandtheatricalexperiencewillbeabletofeedbacktomy research, thusbroadening the responses and reliability ofmymethodology; the risksof subjectivity areeliminated. Additionally, the reliability of my questionnaire will be further improved by utilisingstandardization; participantsof thequestionnairewill receive the same instructions andbeasked the samequestionsprovidingequalopportunitiestovoicetheiropinions.

Secondly,mycomparativeanalysis isalso facedwith limitations;because Iamonlycomparing twomusicalsfromtwosimilartimeperiods,theremaynotbealargeenoughstudyrange,makingthismethodsomewhatsubjective.Henceforth,theremaybealackoftheatricalconventions–asidentifiedinmydiscourseanalysis–reflectedthroughthesetwomusicals,thusaffectingthevalidityofthisformofprimaryevidence.Inordertomakemycomparativeanalysismorereliableandvalid,Icouldexploreabroaderrangeofmusicals–suchassix,insteadoftwo–fromvaryingtimeperiodsandsocioculturalcontexts.Thisway,Iwillobtainmoreaccesstovarying theatrical conventions–bothhistoricalandmodern–as Iwillbe researchingdifferentgenresofmusicaltheatre.

4. DATAANALYSIS4.1:THEANALYSISOFQUANTITATIVEANDQUALITATIVEDATAIn this chapter, I will be analysing both quantitative and qualitative results from my two aforementionedmethodologies:aquestionnaire,andacomparativestudy.Iwillbepresentingquantitativedataobtainedfrommyquestionnaire(seeAppendix1forquestions)throughgraphs,generatedonGoogleForms(Figure1);thiswill display theentire rangeof results that Iobtainedperquestionclearlyandaccurately. Furthermore,myqualitative data, gathered from the comparative analysis, will be presented in tables with conventions ofmusicaltheatre(keythemes)colour-coded(Figure2).

4.2:FIGURE1Iobtainedvariousquanititative responses frommyquestionnaire, froma sampleof twentyparticipants. Todisplayandanalysethisdata,IgeneratedpiechartsviaGoogleForms;below,Iwillidentifythetrendsineachindividualquantitaitveresult.


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Overall,therewasanequalbalancebetweenthemaleandfemalegender,eliminatingthepossibilityofgenderbias.Ifgenderbiaswasalimitingfactor,theequalbalancebetweenmaleandfemaleopinionsensurethatmyresultsforthefollowingquestionsarereliablecontributorstomyoverallresearch.

Themajorityofmyparticipants(50%)hadwitnessed11+livemusicaltheatreshows;fromthis,Icaninferthatthese participants spectate not only the performance, but conventions of musical theatre that may bebeneficialinenhancingtheoverallenjoymentandimpactoftheproduction.Thisisbecausethemoretheatreonewatches,themoreobservantthey’relikelytobeinidentifyingdeepersemioticsoftheatrewhichcanbetracedbacktothehistoricalconventionsofmusicaltheatre(asexploredinmydiscourseanalysis).

Similarlytothepreviouspiechart,themajorityofparticipantshaveengagedin11+piecesofmusicaltheatrethroughthescreen.Furthermore,thisallowsmetoinferthattheyareabletoappreciateothermoremodern,technicalandcontextualconventionsofmusicaltheatreinthetelevisionandfilmindustrythatmayenhancetheproduction’senjoymentandimpact,duetotheaforementionedlikelihoodofobservance.Fromthesetwopie charts, it is clear to interpret that themajorityof theparticipants inmyquestionnaireare familiarwithmusicaltheatre;thisaloneimpliesthatmusicaltheatreiswidelyenjoyedduetothenumberofparticipantsinmysamplewhohavebeenimpactedbyvaryingformsofmusical.


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The vast majority of participants (65%) in this question enjoy watching mainstream, live musical theatre

shows, typically exhibited today on theWest End or Broadway. This suggests that modern conventions of

musicaltheatremayenhance itsenjoymentand impactoftheperformance(suchaspop-inspiredsongsand

contemporarychoreography,aswellasspecialeffectsandlighting).Despitethis,10%ofparticipantsenjoyed

watchingopera,meaningthatalinkcanstillbemadebetweenimpactingfactorsonenjoyablemusicaltheatre

andthe influenceofthishistoricalconvention.Furthermore,the impactofhistoricalconventionscouldhave

possiblysparkedtheuseofsongs,vocalsandchoreographywithintoday’smusicals,duetothelinksthatcan

be made with the historical conventions of theatre and the prevalent theatrical factors seen in today’s

performances.

Onthisquestion,therewasawiderdistributionbetweenresponses, implyingthatthereareseveralmodern

and historical conventions that act as an effective enhancer of the enjoyment and impact of live musical

theatre. The majority of participants (35%) felt that the use of vocalisation and singing enhanced the

enjoymentofalivemusicaltheatrepiece.Linkstoopera–asidentifiedinthepreviouspiechartanddiscourse

analysis–canbemadewithvocalisationandsinginginmusicaltheatre,asstoryinoperawastraditionallytold

through singing and vocalisation. Therefore, opera could be hitherto interpreted as being one of themost

influentialhistoricalconventionsofmusicaltheatre,makingitevidentthatthisconventionhashadanimpact

ontheatricalaspectstoday.Additionally,20%ofparticipantsbelievedthatdanceandchoreographyenhanced

theirenjoymentofthelivetheatricalexperience;thiscanbelinkedtoanotheroriginofmusicaltheatre,Jingxi

(whichwasalsoresearchedinmydiscourseanalysisaswellasbeinglaterstudiedinmycomparativeanalysis).

Elaboratechoreographyseenintheatricalproductionstodaycouldbederivedfromthishistoricalconvention

ofmusical theatrewhich also largely utilised this factor; however,manymodern choreographers have had


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immense influence amongmusical theatre as we know it today, implying that Jingxi – a historical form of

musical theatre in China – has beenmanipulated by the charisma ofmodern choreography, which is now

heavily abundant and allegorically impacting in musical theatre worldwide, in addition to the audience’s

evidentenjoymentofthistheatricalfactorwhenexposedtosuchaspectacle.

Moreover,mostoftheparticipantsforthisquestion(40%)feltthatthemusicalsoundtrackmadethemusical

theatrethroughthescreenamoreenjoyableexperience.Here,Icaninferthatmodernconventions,suchas

onlinestreamingthroughdevicessuchasmobilephonesandtablets,enhancetheenjoymentofamusical.The

evidentenjoymentofthemusicalsoundtrack leadstotheonlinestreamingofthefeaturedsongs;fromthis,

the inferencecanbemadethat thesoundtrackhadanevident lasting impactontheaudienceafterviewing

(andevidentlyenjoying)themusical.Inadditiontothis,whenreferringtothepreviousquestion,itisapparent

thattheoveralluseofmusicclearlymakesmusicaltheatreanenjoyablespectacleamongtheparticipantsof

thequestionnaire;thiscouldimplythattraditionalconventionssuchasopera(particularlyballadoperas)have

influencedtheintroductionofmusicalnumbersintodrama(hencethegenre,musicaltheatre),againshowing

this historical convention to have had immense impact on musical theatre as we know it today. On the

contrary, it couldbeargued thatmodernmusical conventions suchaspopmusic couldhave influenced the

scoreofthesongsandthereforeappealedtoamodern-dayaudience,thusenhancingtheenjoymentexerted

bythemusical.


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Thevastmajorityofparticipants (80%)respondedwith livemusical theatreasbeingtheirpreferred formof

this theatrical genre. Through this and interpretationsof thepreviousquestions, it is implied thathistorical

conventions,suchasoperaandJingxi,havehadanimpactonnumerousaspectsofmusicaltheatre.However,

modern conventions such as contemporary dance factors and the implementation of pop music – as also

suggestedfromthepreviousquestions–havelikewiseactedassufficientenhancersofamusical’senjoyment.

Despite this, due to the fact that live musicals are significantly preferred over film and television musical

theatre, Ican inferthat theaforementionedselectivehistoricalconventionsaremoreeffective inenhancing

theenjoymentandimpactofaperformancethanmodernconventions,becausethemodernconventionsare

utilised more abundantly within the seemingly less-popular on-screen musical theatre. Moreover, modern

conventions are easily linked back to various historical conventions, showing that the historical theatrical

conventions’ prevalence has had a lasting impact on theatre-viewers over many years. This inference is

furthermore supportedby thequestionasking, “Whichof the followingdo youenjoywatching themost?”;

again, the majority of participants responded with “Live musical theatre”. From my research so far, this

suggeststhatacombinationofhistoricalconventions–aslistedinmyupcomingcomparativeanalysis–have

immensely impacted theenjoyable factorsofmusical theatre today,bothsinglehandedlyandby influencing

modernconventions.

For this question, a greater percentage of participants (35%) felt as though chorus was one of the most

abundantconventionsofmusicaltheatre,displayedinbothlivemusicalsandfilmandtelevisionmusicals.This

impliesthattheGreekchorusdynamicinfluencedmainstreammusicaltheatre,showingtheideaofchorusto

be an effective conveyer of semiotics and henceforth having an apparent impact on theatrical aspects

throughouttheyears.Interestingly,theleastrecognisedconventionofmusicaltheatrewastheuseofsoprano

andoperaticsingingwithinthemusicalnumbers;incontrasttothequestionasking,“Whichfactorsofmusical

theatremakethepieceenjoyableforyou?”,thisquestionimpliesthatoperaticfactorshavelimitedprofusion

withinmodern-daymusicalsoverall.Thiscouldbebecausepopularmusicismorelikelytoresonatewitha21st

centuryaudienceinstead,thusincreasingtheenjoymentofmusicaltheatremoreeffectivelythanlesssocially-

appreciatedgenresofmusicsuchasopera inaBaroqueorClassicalstyle.Wecanthereforesummarisethat

opera is a musical genre that impacted structures of theatre today (such as the use of songs to depict

characterised plots and sub-plots), but may not be the most enjoyed of the various conventions studied

amongsttoday’stheatricalsociety.


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4.3:FIGURE2The table below displays my qualitative results for my comparative analysis. I have colour-coded eachconvention (theme) of musical theatre in order to clearly present my analytical comments for each one.Furthermore,Ihavecolour-codedeachofmystatementstodisplaywhethertheyareapparentinthemusicalornot. I initiallywatchedbothmusicalsandmadenotesontheoccurrenceofmusicaltheatre’sconventionsafter conducting my discourse analysis; from these notes, I organised them into the table below andelaboratedonthenotes,beforecolour-codingthemsothatthemesareclearlyhighlighted.

Key• Chorus

• Opera

• Jingxi

• ModernConventions

• Originpresent

•Originabsent

OriginsofMusicalTheatre

Rent–FilmMusical Matilda–LiveMusical

Chorus • Thismusicalfeaturedmanysongssanginchorus,relatingtothesynchronyofGreekchorusandthevocalsinwhichtheyusedtoenhancetheirchorusednarration.

• Rentdidnotutiliseanychoralmovementduetothefactthatitwasfilmedandactednaturalistically(despitetheconstantoutbreakintomusicalnumbers).

• ParticularlyinthedanceandmusicalnumbersofMatilda,thereissubstantialuseofchorus,asthereislargeutilisationofunisonwhendancingandsinging.

• Inthismusical,theuseofchoruswasfurthermorerecognisedsignificantlyduringactingscenes;therearemanyoccasionsduringthemusicalthroughoutinwhichthestudentsactasacompanyinsynchrony,similarlytoaGreekchorusdynamic.

Opera • Larson’smusicalwaswrittenbasedonPuccini’sfamedopera,LaBohème.

• Thereareexamplesofnotesinsomeofthemusical’snumbers–suchasin‘SeasonsofLove’–thatmimicthenotesreachedbysopranooperasingers(suchasahighC).

• Duringsongs,therewasnoevidenceofanoperatictimbreproducedbythevocalsoftheperformers.Toaddtothis,thesongswerepredominantlywrittenforthetenororaltosinger,meaningthatnoextremesofnotes–whetherthatissoprano,baritoneorfalsetto–werepresentedin


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Matilda.• However,wecanvaguelylinkthe

structureofthismusicaltothatofa

balladopera;botharestructured

tocontainbothactingandsong.

Thismodern-daymusical,however,

utilisesdanceaswellasthesetwo

aforementionedfactors,asballad

operasweremainlyfocussedon

thedramaticpresentationsofa

characterthroughsongandspeech.

Jingxi • RentdisplayslinkstoJingxiasitportraystheromantic

relationshipsofseveral

protagonistsofthemusical;

Jingxiwasheavilyromantic.

• Additionally,similarlytoJingxi,

therewasuseofsongto

accompanyacting,thus

enhancingtheatmosphereand

creatingtensioninnecessary

scenes.

• Likethespectacleofarchaic

ChineseJingxi,Matildautilisesfactorssuchasacrobaticsand

elaboratechoreography,thus

makinglinkstoJingxi’sspectacular

physicality.

• Similarlytobothballadoperasand

Jingxi,therewassufficientuseof

songtoaccompanyacting

throughouttheentiretyofthis

piece.

• Matildacontainsexamplesof

melodramaticdirectionfrom

multiplecharacters,aswellas

looselycontaininglinkstostock

characters–suchasadame(Miss

Trunchbull).Stockcharacters,or

otherwise‘pantomime-like’

characters,canbelinkedtoJingxi

asthiswasoneofitsfeatures.

Modern

Conventions

• Moremodernisedtechnology

wasseentobeutilisedwithin

thispiecesuchastheobvious

useofspotlightswithinthe

SeasonsofLovenumber;

thoughthisisafilmmusical,

theuseofsimplespotlights

shiningdownoneachofthe

characterscanbedirectly

linkedtoLarson’soriginal

Broadwayshowofthesame

name,firstperformedin1996,

whichmimickedthedirection

oflightingduringthisnumber.

Thisshowstheonstagemusical

tohavehadadirectimpacton

the2005motion-picturedue

toitsre-enactmentofthe

lightingarrangementfor

SeasonsofLove.

• Matildausesmoderntechnology

withintheperformanceforthe

purposeofsemiotics,visually

accompanyingthefeelingsandplot

portrayedbythecharactersand

music;forexample,thelivemusical

displaysprojections,meaningthat

modernisedtechnologysuchasa

projectorandlightingwasrequired.

• ThemusicalalsousesmodernSFX

tocreateatmosphereinseveral

scenes,suchastheuseofadryice

machineandelaboratelightingfor

allegoricalpurposes.


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• Thefactthatthismusicalisa

filmcouldbeinterpretedasa

modernconventioninitself;

theequipmentrequiredto

recordandproducethisfilmin

2005(e.g.cameras,artificial

lighting,soundequipment,

editingmaterialetc.)isinno

wayderivedfromthe

aforementionedhistorical

conventionsofmusical

theatre.

Ultimately,frommycomparativeanalysis,itisapparentthatJingxihadoneofthemostinfluentialimpactson

mainstreammusicaltheatretodayasahistoricalconvention,duetothesufficientevidenceofitsabundance

displayed in both musicals. Additionally, musicals today – both onscreen and onstage – immensely utilise

modernconventionsandtechnology;fromthisdiscovery,wecaninferthatthemodernconventionsofmusical

theatrecouldbeconsideredasahighly-impacting factorofmusical theatre; itsevidentprevalence isdueto

the enjoyment of these conventions by numerous audiences. However, in contrast to elements of my

questionnaire, the data accumulated frommy comparative analysis states that other historical conventions

such as opera were not particularly prevalent within popular modern musical theatre. Though historical

conventionslikeoperaweresomewhatimpactingonthedevelopmentofthemusical(forexample,anopera

being the inspiration for the 1996musical, Rent), their lack of abundance displayed within these musicals

suggestthattheimplementationoftheseconventionshavenoeffectontheaudience’soverallenjoymentofa

musical.

5. DISCUSSION&CONCLUSION

5.1:DISCUSSION

THEGREEKCHORUSDYNAMIC

Overall, through all three ofmymethods, the historical convention ofGreek chorus is relatively copious in

popularmusicaltheatre.Frommyfirstmethod–thediscourseanalysis–IdiscoveredthattheGreekchorus

dynamicimpactedthesubstantialuseofchoruswithinmodernmusicaltheatreoftoday.

Furthermore, examples of Greek chorus’s factors were identified in both musicals (in film and onstage)

throughmycomparativeanalysis;thiswaspredominantlyreflectedthroughdanceandmusicalnumbersinthe

theatre,aswellassongsonscreen.Thereasonwhychorusthroughmovementmaynothavebeenasabundant

inonscreenmusicaltheatrecouldbeduetothefactthatdramaisoftenperformedmorenaturalisticallyinthe

filmindustry,whereasonastagethearea isprovidedtopresenttheatrical ideas inamorestylisedmanner.

Therefore,IcaninferthattheconventionofGreekchorushashadmoreofanimpactonlivemusicaltheatre

thanithasonfilmedmusicals.

Despite the apparent historical linksmade to theGreek chorusdynamic throughmydiscourse analysis and

comparativeanalysis,myquestionnairesomewhatcounteractstheappreciationofthechoralconvention.The

questionnaireasksa sampleof twentypeoplevariousquestions regardingwhichaspectsofmusical theatre

theyappreciate,togainanunderstandingofwhatmakesamusicalenjoyableandimpactingintheeyesofthe

public.Throughmyfindings,theuseofchoruswasoveralltheleastenjoyedconventionofmusicaltheatre.


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Despite this, the results also suggest that chorus was the most recognised convention of musical theatre;conclusively, when linking this interpretation to my aforesaid methods, this means that that although thehistorical conventionmay not increase the enjoyment ofmusical theatre, it still impacted other aspects ofmusicaltheatre,suchaschoralsingingandtheconceptofunisonwithinadancecompany.

OPERAAccordingtobothmyprimaryandsecondaryresearch,opera–particularlythestructureofballadoperas–hasimpactedvariousareasofmusicaltheatre,suchasthevocalrangeinsomescores,aswellastheincorporationofsongtoenhancethedramaoftheatre. Inmy literaturereviewfindings,wecanmakeclear linksbetweentheinfluenceofoperaonmusicaltheatre;bothformsofperformanceareadramaticexpressionofastoryorpoliticalcontroversythroughtheuseofvocalandinstrumentaldepiction.Duetotheartforms’politicallinks,itcouldbeinterpretedthatthehistoricalconventionofoperahasasocioculturalimpactonmodernaudiences.Additionally,musicaltheatreandballadoperasaretremendouslysimilar inthattheycombinebothdialogueandsong,showingthatoperahasimpactedtheatricalstructures.

Moreover, my questionnaire reveals that opera could act as a factor which enhances the enjoyment andimpact of musical theatre. From my collective quantitative data, I can interpret that opera increased theenjoymentoftheatreduetotheparticipants’appreciationofthemusicalvocalnumberswithinbothonscreenandonstagemusicaltheatre.Withouttheinfluenceofopera,musicaltheatrewouldnotexistduetothefactthat the dramatic aspectwould not be accompanied by song. Furthermore, this supports the idea that theconventionofoperaistheatricallyimpactingduetothisinfluenceonmodernmusicaltheatre.Inaddition,myquestionnaire conveys that opera alone is appreciated by a portion of my sample, meaning that theconvention’stheatricalimplementationsomewhatenhancestheenjoymentofmusicaltheatre.

However,mycomparativeanalysiscouldbeusedtocounteracttheideathatoperaenhancestheenjoymentofmusical theatre, both onstage and onscreen. Although Rent, the onscreen musical (adapted from Larson’sonstage90sBroadway show),wasbasedonPuccini’s opera,LaBohème, and containednotesof a sopranorangeinsomenumbers,theactuallivemusicalofMatildadidnotdisplayanylinkstooperainitsvocalscore.Thissuggeststhat21stCenturymusicalshavemovedonfromthehistoricalconventionofoperaasaformofentertainment and approached the modern convention of popular music to inspire the composition of itsnumbers. Despite the feature of operatic vocal ranges – ranging from baritone to soprano – not beingparticularlyapparentin21stCenturymusicals,operahasseeminglyhadawideimpactontheoverallstructureofthemusical.

Conclusively, opera – particularly ballad operas – can be considered as a historical convention of musicaltheatrewhichenhancestheatricalimpactwhenanalysingthedataasawhole.Overall,thetheatricalimpactofoperaandtheclearlinksthatcanbemadebetweenfeaturesofmusicaltheatreandthisconventioncontradictthe slight counterargument suggested by the idea that Matilda does not reflect any themes of opera.However, this counterargument does support the idea that opera does not increase the enjoyment of amusicaltheatreperformance.

JINGXIThrough my methodology, I have made the discovery that Jingxi was an incredibly influential historicalconvention in the development of musical theatre; within my discourse analysis, I can make clear linksbetweenmodern-daymusicaltheatreandJingxi.Forexample,throughmyfindingsitisclearthatbothgenresof theatre combine art forms such as song, dance and acting to produce a spectacle. Henceforth, thisextremelyanalogouscombinationofdramaturgical factors imply that Jingxihashada substantial impactontheatricalstructures,thuscontributingtotheformationofmusicaltheatre.


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Furthermore, my questionnaire somewhat suggests that many themes linked to Jingxi are enjoyed by thetypical theatre-viewer; the majority of participants, when watching both live musical theatre and filmedmusicaltheatre,saidthattheyenjoyfactorssuchasthedanceandchoreography,aswellasthesingingandvocalisation.Bycross-referencingmyliteraturereview,itisapparentthatsuchfactorsareabundantin–andcouldbederivedfrom–theArchaicChineseartofJingxi.Ontheotherhand,theaforementionedfactorsthatwerepopular amongmyquestionnaire sample canbe linkedwithother conventionsofmusical theatre.Anexampleofthisisthatsingingandvocalisationcanberootedtotheoriginofopera;thisimpliesthatitwasnotjustJingxialonethathadthemostmajorimpactonpopularmusicaltheatreoftoday.Moreover,factorssuchas dance and choreography that are enjoyed by current audiencesmay derive fromnewer conventions, astoday’smusicaltheatregenerallyimplementsmoremodernisedstylesofdance(asobservedwhilstconductingmycomparativeanalysis),suchascontemporary,asopposedtotraditionalChinesedancethatwould’vebeenspectatedwithinJingxi.Toaddtothis,myquestionnairecontainsnodirectevidenceofthespecificconventionofJingxibeingenjoyedamongmyparticipants;henceforth,thissuggeststhatalthoughJingxi impacteduponseveralmodernfeaturesofmusicaltheatre,theconventionalonedoesnotenhancetheenjoyabilityofmusicaltheatre.

Throughmycomparativeanalysis,additional linkscanbemadetofurtheraspectsofJingxi.Forexample,thefilm musical, Rent, focusses on the romantic relationships between the protagonists of the musical. Myliterature review findings state that Jingxi tells stories of a romantic nature, thus linking to modern-daymusicals in that storylines share similarities in their content.Additionally,Matilda relates to Jingxi in that itmakesuseofacrobatics; Jingxi, too,wasaspectaclewhichmadesufficientuseofthis.Similarlytomyothermethods, my comparative analysis provides strong support for the considerable impact of Jingxi upon thecreationofmusicaltheatre.

Tosummarise,bothmyprimaryandsecondaryevidenceimplythatJingxiclearlyhadanevidentinfluenceonmodern musical theatre; my comparative analysis and discourse analysis both support this idea, as thefeatures of Jingxi have been identified within both live musical theatre and filmed musical theatre.Furthermore,myquestionnaireconcludesthatmanyfeaturesofJingxiwereenjoyedandappreciatedbytheparticipants,meaning that Jingxiwashighly impactingonmodernmusical theatreandaudiences,aswellassomewhatenhancingtheaudienceenjoymentofatypicalperformance.

MODERNCONVENTIONSOFMUSICALTHEATREModernconventionsofmusicaltheatrehaveseeminglyhadanimpactonmusicaltheatreoftoday;thiscanbediscussedthroughbothmyprimaryandsecondaryevidence.Firstly,my literaturereviewstatesthatmusicaltheatrehashitits“GoldenAge”(Tepper,2016,pg.1)throughitsmodernisationoflivemusicaltheatreanditsintroduction into the filmand television industries in recent years.Due to its constant exposureon thebigscreenandathome,thisimplementstheideathatmodernconventionseffectivelyenhancetheenjoyabilityofmusicaltheatre.

Inaddition,thisideacanbefurthersupportedbymyquestionnaireresults;thegreatermajorityofparticipantssay that their favourite aspect of filmedmusical theatre is the soundtrack. Therefore, this implies that themodernabilitytostreamanddownloadmusichadincreasedtheenjoymentofmusicaltheatreduetopeople’sdesiretolistentothismusicexternallytothetheatre,televisionorcinema.Moreover,thesubstantialuseoftheinternetmeansincreasedexposuretomusicaltheatre,meaningthatmodernconventionscanalsoimpacttargetaudiences, thusenticing them toengagewith thepromotedperformance.On theotherhand, in thequestionasking,“Regardingthesefactors,doyoupreferlivemusicaltheatreorfilm/televisionmusicals?”,thevast majority of participants favoured live musicals. Although interpretations of modern conventions areappreciatedwithin livemusicaltheatre(fromtheperspectivesofmyparticipants),historicalconventionsareseentoexertahigher impactonstagedmusicals;theabundanceofmodernconventions inthe less-popular


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cinematicformofmusicalsuggestthatthesefactorsdonothaveanenormousimpactonthedevelopmental

structuresofmusicaltheatreasawhole.

However,agreatdealofmodernconventionsofmusical theatrewere reflectedwithinbothmusicals inmy

comparative analysis. For example, within Rent, the filmed musical utilised recording equipment such as

microphonesandcamerasinordertoproducethemusicalinacinematicformat.Microphonesarenowlargely

used within modern-day live musicals to augment the voices of the performers when singing and acting.

Henceforth,thisimpliesthatmoderntechnology–influencedbythemoderninventionofmotionpicture–has

impactedtechnologicalaspectsoflivemusicaltheatretoday.Furthermore,thelivemusicalofMatildamakes

useofspecialeffectssuchasdigitalvisualprojectionsanddry ice; thetechnologyrequiredtoachievethese

effectshenceforthincreasesthespectacleconceptofthispopularmusical,implyingthatmoderntechnologyis

enjoyed by audiences of mainstream musicals and thus enhances the overall impact of the theatrical

experience.

Through my methods, it is apparent that modern conventions of musical theatre clearly increase the

enjoymentoftheperformanceduetotheirprevalenceassemioticswithinmodern-daymusicals,bothonstage

andonscreen.Conclusively,thoughmodernconventionshaveevidentlyenhancedtheenjoyabilityofmusicals,

itcouldbearguedthattheyareonlysomewhatimpactingwithinthetechnologicalaspectsofmusicaltheatre,

asopposedtoitsstructureandplot.

5.2:FINALCONCLUSION

Toconclude,throughtheamalgamationofall informationretrievedandanalysed, itcanbe interpretedthat

bothhistoricalandmodernconventionsofmusicaltheatreenhancetheimpactofmusicaltheatre;however,

dissimilar conventions affect these factors differently. On one hand, the combined data implies that the

historicalconventions’rolesmainlyenhancedtheimpactofmusicaltheatre;thisisinastructuralsensewhich

overall affects the impactof theperformedmusical. Firstly, aspectsof songwere impactedby factorsofall

three of themost prevalent historical conventions: opera, Jingxi and the Greek chorus dynamic. Jingxi and

operaseeminglyinfluencedtheintroductionofsongsintoadramaticpiece,hencecreatingmusicaltheatreas

weknow it today.Furthermore, theGreekchorusdynamic influenced texturalaspectsof themusical score,

presentingheavyuseofvocalunisonwithintoday’smusicalnumbers.Anotherheavyaspectofmusicaltheatre

wasalsointroducedasaresultofJingxi’simpact;danceandchoreography(includingacrobatics)canbeseen

substantiallywithintoday’smusicalperformances;thesefactorswerederivedfromJingxi,whichalsoheavily

utiliseddanceandchoreographywithinthespectacle.Aspectsofthestorylinecanalsobeseentohavebeen

impactedbyhistoricalconventions;thepoliticaldeliberationsdiscussedwithinoperathroughsongcannowbe

seen as a feature of modern-day musical theatre, in which sociocultural and political issues are often

allegoricallydiscussed.Jingxi impactedthecharacterswithinthestoryline,producingmemorablepantomime

charactersandinfluencingdepictionsofromancethatareoftenprevalentwithinmusicalstorylines.Incontrast

to historical conventions, modern conventions predominantly enhanced the enjoyment ofmusicals. This is

mainlydue tocurrentsociocultural influences; forexample,aspectssuchasdanceandsongweresowidely

enjoyed within my research due to the impacts of modern pop music and contemporary choreography.

Furthermore, technological factors largely increased the enjoyability of musical theatre; features such as

lighting,projectionsandSFXcreateasenseofgustoamonganaudienceduetothespectacularvisualdisplay

produced, as well as acting as semiotics to enhance the overall performance and storyline. Therefore, in

conclusion, historical conventions mainly enhanced the impact of musical theatre, whereas modern

conventionsmainlyenhancedamusical’senjoyment.


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6. EVALUATION6.1:SUCCESSOFTHERESEARCHAt the beginning of my project, I set the following three objectives to aid me in the development andcompletionofmyresearch:

1. Whatarethehistoricalconventionsofmusicaltheatre?2. Whichkeyconventionsenhancethetypicaltheatre-viewer’senjoymentofmusicaltheatre?3. Aremodernconventionsofmusical theatremoreeffective inenhancingamusical’senjoymentand

impactthanitshistoricalconventions?

The accomplishment of the aforesaid sub-questions has led to the final conclusion of my overall researchquestion,being“Whatconventionsenhancetheenjoymentandimpactofmusicaltheatre?”.

Firstly, I have reached my first objective by successfully identifying the historical conventions of musicaltheatre; this was achieved through my discourse analysis. Through this, I have found that the historicalconventionsofmusicaltheatreare:theGreekchorusdynamic,opera,Jingxiandmoralityplays.

Moreover, I was able to use the aforementioned historical conventions, in conjunction with researchedmodernconventions(alsoidentifiedviamydiscourseanalysis),toformulateaquestionnaire.Thismethodledtothecompletionofmysecondobjective,duetothefactthat Iwasprovidedwithan insightofthespecificconventionsthatthetypicaltheatre-viewerenjoys.Fromthismethod,Ifoundthatfactorsofmusicaltheatre–suchastheuseofsongandchoreography–wereheavilyenjoyedbymyrelativelylargesample,comprisedoftwentyparticipants.Thissample,duetoitsdiversityregardingfactorssuchasgenderandtheatricalexposure,can be seen as representative of the typical theatre-viewer when using generalisation to amalgamate theindividualresponses.Typically,theenjoymentofbothsonganddancewithinamusicalcanbeconsideredasmodern conventions due to the sociocultural influences of pop music and contemporary choreography.However,itcanalsobeinterpretedastheimpactsofhistoricalconventionssuchasoperaandJingxi;bothofthesehistoricalconventions influencedthe introductionofsong intoadrama,hencethecreationofmusicaltheatre. Furthermore, looking deeper into the enjoyment exerted by the specific convention of opera, thequestionnaire made it seemingly apparent that opera as a convention alone was somewhat enjoyed by aminorpercentageofmyparticipants.Toaddtothis,danceandchoreographywasaheavilyabundantfeatureof Jingxi, henceforth showing aspects of this convention to have been enjoyed by a typical audience.Additionally, ahistorical conventionwhichdisplayeda substantial impactonmusical theatrewas theGreekchorusdynamic;itisshowntohavehadaheavyinfluenceonaspectsoftoday’smusicals,asthevastmajorityofparticipantsidentifiedthisconvention’ssignificantprevalencewithinmusicals.Henceforth,thisshowsthattheuseofchorusissoabundantlyusedasithashadsuccessfulallegoricalimpactonaudiencesthroughouttheyears as a convention used in numerous theatrical genres. With regards to modern conventions, it alsobecame clear that technological aspects had an impact on my participants. For example, the musicalsoundtrackwithinthemodernconventionoffilmedmusicalswerelargelyenjoyedbymysample,implyingthatmodernisedfeaturesofthe21stCentury,suchasstreaminganddownloadingmusicaltracks,hadimpactedthepromotionofmusicaltheatretothepublicduetotheextensivelyenjoyedsoundtrack.Thereasonwhythesesoundtracks could be considered as enjoyablemay be due to the influences ofmodern popmusic on thenotatedscores,meaning that today’saudiencesaremore likely to resonatewith themusicalcontentof theshow.

Finally,undertakingmycomparativeanalysisdirectedmetothepartialaccomplishmentofmythirdobjective.Byusingmyquestionnaireresultstorefinethemostimpactingandenjoyedconventionsofmusicaltheatre,Icarriedoutthiscomparativeanalysistodetecttheprevalenceofthespecificconventions,thusenablingmeto


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conclude whether modern or historical conventions are more effective in enhancing the enjoyment andimpactofmusicaltheatre.Idecidedtocompareafilmedmusicaltoalivemusicalinordertoidentifywhetherthe same conventions enhanced the enjoyment and impact of a modern depiction of musical theatre incomparisontoaslightlymoreold-fashionedstyle.Tocontradictmyquestionnaireresults,theimplicationsofdata obtained from my comparative analysis states that the convention of opera was not effective inenhancingtheenjoymentofmusicaltheatre;theuseofoperaticconventionswerescarcewithintheanalysedlivemusicalofMatilda.This implies that thevocalornamentationofanoperatic style isunpopularwithinamusical score, showing that virtuosic extremities of notes are unconventional. However, there areinterpretationsthatoperaisanimpactingtheatricalconvention;theotheranalysedmusical,Rent,wasbasedon Puccini’s opera, LaBohème. Due to the contradiction described, it is implied that the completion ofmythirdobjectivewasnotfullyachieved.Toelucidatethelimitingambiguityastowhetherornottheconventionofoperaenhances theenjoymentaspectofmusical theatre, itmaybebeneficial to carryout anadditionalcomparativeanalysisregardingtwomoremusicals, inordertofurther investigateopera’seffectsonawiderrange of musicals’ enjoyability. Considering my third objective, the clarification of the aforementionedcontradiction will then enable me to compare the amalgamated historical conventions with the modernconventions,toseewhichenhancestheenjoymentandimpactofmusicaltheatremosteffectively.

Historically, opera has therefore impacted dramatic storylines of musicals. As well as this, operas – balladoperas in particular – have introduced the combination of song and drama to portray messages ofsociocultural and political matters over the decades of musical theatre’s existence. These messages arepublicly-impactingduetothedeliberationsofmodernissues.Withinmycomparativeanalysis,thereisfurthersupportfortheimpactoftheGreekchorusdynamic;thisconventionwasheavilyreflectedbytheuseofunisonparticularlywithin song, and itsprevalencewithinmodernisedmusicalnumbers suggests that thishistoricalconventionhasimpactedtexturalfeaturesofthescore.Similarlytothehistoricalconventionofopera,Jingxiimpacted the storylines of musicals; it was observed that Rent maintained a heavy focus on the romanticoccurrencesofthemainprotagonists.TheinfluenceonplotcouldbederivedfromJingxi,asthisarchaicformof theatre was a strong depiction of romantic storylines. To add to this, the characters inMatilda can belooselytiedtothepantomimicaluseofstockcharacters;thisisbecauseofthesatiricaluseoftheantagonist,Miss Trunchbull. In relation to Jingxi, this convention also contained elements of pantomime, implying thatJingxialsohadan impactoncharacter typeswithinmusical theatre. In termsofmodernconventions, thesewereseentobehighlyprevalentwithinbothmusicalsinmycomparativeanalysis.Themodernconventionoflighting was noticeable within bothmusicals, particularlyRent; thismusical famously used direct overheadspotlightsasasemioticfortheinnocenceoflovewithinthecharacters’lives.Thiswasheavilyimpactingduetotheallegoricalimplicationsofthismodernconvention.Itcouldbearguedthatthisimpactledtotheincreasedenjoyment of thismusical number. Furthermore,Matilda features further technological factors such as theuniqueuseofprojectionstoenhancethescene;fromanaudienceperspective,thisenhancedtheenjoyabilityof the musical due to the spectacular display. Conclusively, in response to my third objective, there is nodefinitiveanswer;clearlyfromthisresearch,thereisacombinationofbothhistoricalandmodernconventionsthatenhancetheenjoymentandimpactofmusicaltheatre–noconventionoutweighstheotherinitssuccessatachievingthis.

6.2:PERSONALDEVELOPMENTSANDSELF-EVALUATIONThroughmyinvolvementintheExtendedProjectQualification,Ihaveobtainedvariousbeneficialskillsthatarelikelytoaidmeinfurthereducationandfutureendeavours.Forexample,Ihavegainedtime-managementandorganisationalskillsduetothe independenceof thiscourse.Furthermore, Ihaveaccumulatedskills thatarevaluableforpossibleuniversityworkinthefuture,suchaslearninghowtoreference,constructabibliography,andwrite inanacademic fashion. Lastly, through the independent conductionof three researchmethods, Inowpossessusefulanalyticalresearchskills–suchastheabilitytoutilisetriangulation–thatIhopetoapplytofutureprojectsandinvestigations.


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Though working independently throughout the course, I ensured that I considered and applied feedbackreceivedfrombothpeersandmyteacherassessors.Anexampleofutilisingpeerfeedbackwaswhencreatingmy questionnaire; during the process of this, I requested for my peers to complete a first draft of myquestionnaire and simultaneously evaluate it for improvements. I used this feedback in order to bettermyquestionnaireandensurethatthismethodwouldcollectthemostaccurateandrelevantinformationpossible,tocontributetomyoverall research.Asaforementioned, Ialsoutilisedteacherassessor feedback. Initially, IfounditdifficulttolowermywordcountasIhadsignificantlysurpassedthis.Henceforth,myteacherassessorssuggestedthat I readthroughthespecificationandgenericmarkscheme;thisprovidedmewithadefinitiveunderstandingofthenecessaryinformationtobeincluded,sothatIcouldremoveanyirrelevantcontent.

Uponreflection,ifIweretoundertakethisprojectagain,therearefurtherareasofresearchthatIwouldliketodelvedeeperinto.Forexample,IwouldliketoinvestigatethedifferencesbetweenthetheatricalopinionsofpeopletodaycomparedwiththosewhowatchedmusicaltheatrewhentheartformfirstmadeitsdebutontheWest End and Broadway, and whether there is a historical influence on which conventions enhance amusical’s impact and enjoyability. This could be carried out by the analysis of secondary resources such ashistorical questionnaires or interviews frommusical directors. Furthermore,when researching thehistoricalconventionsofmusicaltheatre,Igraduallycametotherealisationthatpantomimemayhavebeenapossiblehistorical convention of musical theatre, as I was able to extract similarities between both historical andmodern conventions, and this genre of theatre. Therefore, to research pantomime further and identifywhetheritisahistoricalconventionofmusicaltheatre,Icouldreadarticlessurroundingthistopicandconductafurtherdiscourseanalysis,reviewingmyliteraturefindings.

6.3:WIDERCONTEXTOFRESEARCHForfutureutilisation,myresearchmaybehelpfulfordirectors,practitionersandwritersofmusicaltheatre;byusing triangulation to validly identify which conventions enhance a musical’s enjoyment and impact, theinformationobtainedcouldassistinthecreationofthe‘ultimate’musical,containingallconventionstocreatethemostenjoyableandimpactingtheatricalperformancepossible.


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BIBLIOGRAPHYDelcayre,C.,(2016).TheGreekChorusinAncientandContemporaryTheatre.Retrieved12thDecember2016,fromhttp://www.sonoma.edu/theatreanddance/_docs/badpenny_chorus.pdf.

EditorsofEncyclopædiaBritannica,(2009).Moralityplay.EncyclopædiaBritannica, Inc.Retrieved8thJanuary2017,fromhttps://www.britannica.com/art/morality-play-dramatic-genre.

Goodall,H.,(2000).TheInventingofOpera.GreatBritain:Vintage.

GreensboroOpera, (2009-2013).AShortHistoryofOpera.Greensboro,NC:GreensboroOpera.Retrieved4thSeptember2016,fromhttp://www.greensboroopera.org/oft-history.shtml.

Law,J.,(2011).TheMethuenDramaDictionaryoftheTheatre.London:BloomsburyPublishingPlc.Retrieved12thDecember2016,fromhttp://www.dramaonlinelibrary.com/genres/ancient-roman-drama-iid-21412.

Tepper,J.,(2016).AreWeLivinginaNewGoldenAgeofMusicalTheatre?.Playbill Inc.Retrieved8thJanuary2017,fromhttp://www.playbill.com/article/are-we-living-in-a-new-golden-age-of-musical-theatre.

VictoriaandAlbertMuseum,(2016).TheFirstMusicals:BalladOperas.London:VictoriaandAlbertMuseum.Retrieved4thSeptember2016,fromhttp://www.vam.ac.uk/content/articles/t/the-first-musicals/.

Zarrilli,P.etal,(2006).TheatreHistories.2ParkSquare,MiltonPark,Abingdon,Oxon:Routledge.


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APPENDICESAPPENDIX1:QUESTIONNAIREQUESTIONS

1. Whatisyouragegroup?2. Whatisyourgender?3. Roughlyspeaking,howmanypiecesoflivemusicaltheatrehaveyouwatched?4. Howmanypiecesofmusicaltheatrewithinfilmandtelevisionhaveyouwatched?5. Whichofthefollowingdoyouenjoywatchingthemost?6. Whichfactorsoflivemusicaltheatremakethepieceenjoyableforyou?7. Whichfactorsoffilm/televisionmusicalsmakethepieceenjoyableforyou?8. Regardingthesefactors,doyoupreferlivemusicaltheatreorfilm/televisionmusicals?9. Takingtheaforementionedfactorsintoconsideration,whydoyoupreferthistypeofmusicaltheatre?10. Whichconventionsofmusicaltheatredoyouseemostoftenwithinmusicals?

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EPQ Example Written Report - passmoresfalcon.com · By Leah Bartram Level 3 Extended Project Qualification Candidate Number: 2012 2 1. INTRODUCTION 1.1: BACKGROUND Currently, I am