Keer Talk: November 2021

11/12/21

What is the musical genre?

The musical genre as presented in film is a form of theatrical performance that combines aspects such as music and spoken dialogue. Together, these elements form songs that can be taken apart from the film itself to be enjoyed separately. Dance is often included in musical movies, making for an all around extremely theatric experience, all to be perceived through a screen. Musicals consist of heavy emotional content with bursts of humor, love, lust, betrayal, or even anger, all portrayed through lyrics, words, choreography, and technical aspects.

Content

A unique aspect about musical films is the strikingly close connection built between the main character and the audience. This type of connection is built with aspects such as songs describing the inter-workings of the character's minds or even a soliloquy. A sililoquy is a technique where the character speaks directly to the audience or states one thoughts out loud. This literally gives the viewer a key into the character's true emotions to build a more intimate relationship with the viewer, making for a more emotional and personal story.

A soliloquy from "Hamilton: An American Musical", capturing

Hamilton's clustered mental state during his love affair.

As discussed, dance is often a heavily involved aspect of musical films. Choreography accompanies songs for a more visually appealing scene. These dances can be performed by the main character(s) themselves or an ensemble. Either way, it tends to stray away from a "realistic" event, but nevertheless makes for an extremely entertaining piece.

A beautiful dance sequence from "La La Land" with a cinematic background

Expanding on the topic of straying from a "realistic" piece, musical films can often be viewed as dreamlike. Between breaking out in song in regular scenarios or magically having all characters know the steps to a synchronized dance sequence, it's important to note that although captivating, this genre is filled with unrealistic aspects. This can mean flashy wardrobes, exaggerated expression, or any other aspect you'd consider to be dramatic.

One last crucial detail to note regrading the content of this genre is that a central love plot line is found in nearly every musical film. This gives the characters something passionate to sing about. Although cliche, musical films wouldn't be quite the same without all of the feelings that make up the larger threshold of love.

Production Techniques

When developing a musical story, music quite literally acts as a foundation for the story, acting as the main source of information getting across to the viewer. Choice of instrument, pace, layering, or even timing all make up the extremely specific and detailed works of a musical movie's score. When adding lyrics or dialogue to these instrumentals, the job becomes even more intense.

A scene from "High School Musical" where the

song "What Time Is It?"is played.

Lighting is huge in musical film, holding the ability to change the emotion felt from a particular scene. Stage like lights can be identified often in these productions, falling back on the realm of live theatre. Psychology of color is put to use with lighting. Warm hues tend to represent excited moods while cooler hues closely relate to more passive emotion.

Blue lighting is shown in this scene from "The Greatest Showman",

emphasizing the intimacy and intensity of the scene.

Marketing

Excluding films such as High School Musical which are produced for a younger audience, most musical films are made for a wide range of ages to be enjoyed by. With the average age range landing towards the general area of 22-45, the target audience for this genre happens to be young adults. More specifically, female young adults.

The reasoning behind this is fairly simple. Young adults are (generally speaking) old enough to appreciate and understand the full story while not being too old to think of the unrealistic tones as immature or detrimental to production enjoyment. Females tend to be more emotional, appealing to the dramatics of most musical film.

A movie poster such as one shown above appeals to this audience by advertising key elements of musicals. An ensemble is shown, the leading man is displayed in front, and the love story is displayed not much further back. The dramatic blue lighting also aids to enhance the theatrical feel of the poster, reeling in the target audience even more.

Samples:

In The Heights follows the optimistic Usnavi, who runs a bodega in the upbeat community of Washington Heights, selling coffee to save up enough money to return to his home island in the Dominican Republic and at last restore his family's business. Usnavi longs for the gorgeous Vanessa's attention and affection as side characters, Benny and Nina, develop love of their own. Washington Heights is no normal neighborhood, as the streets are made of music. While the temperature in Manhattan rises by the day, the characters sing about their wishes of a better life. In The Heights is packed with vibrant and moving music. With impressive choreography, raps, vocalists, and flow, this film has every element that truly captures the essence of the musical genre. Not to mention, a deep and dramatic love plot line with many heartfelt lyrics to match. With tracks such as "In The Heights", "Blackout", and "Breathe", this production captures the hearts of all musical lovers.

The Greatest Showman follows Phineas Taylor Barnum, a poor but rather ambitious man whose imagination surpasses extraordinary. Longing for success and tired of failure, the son of a tailor opens up a wax museum. The purpose of this museum switches to live acts on the circus stage which are referred to as Barnum's collection of oddities, or in other terms, an absolute freak show. Barnum continues to risk his money and social standing, all for his dreams of being the greatest showman. This film is a performance above all. With a circus theme, the acts and music performed are entrancing. The soundtrack is iconic, with songs like "Rewrite the Stars" and "The Greatest Show". The choreography is visually beautiful, capturing the love interests of Anne and Phillip. The lighting aspects also aid to develop emotion, with beautiful and dramatic cool hues throughout the piece. It captures every bit of a musical film to the tee.

Some Popular Musical Films...