Introduction
Music, dance, and theatre arts have entertained and created memorable stories in many people’s lives throughout history. Theatrical arts from ancient times are among the most unforgettable tales with characters that have stood out for their acting prowess and character development. There are many contemporary adaptations of the old plays where each adoption tries to produce a film that captures the audience’s attention while maintaining the original script. Producers use theatre effects such as acting expertise, costume, and makeup to enhance the plays, which captivate the audience and narrate the tales more vividly. Contemporary music also uses interpretive dance, makeup, and costume designs to convey the story or meaning of music.
Moreover, dance moves communicate many things, such as the song’s emotions, values, and message. Ballet choreography usually tells a story through the twists and turns of the body and hand gestures. Thus, theatre arts explore ways to enhance music, films, and dramas through metaphorical narration using interpretive dance and costume designs that capture the audience’s attention. This essay discusses how acting skills and costume designs enhance Hozier’s song ‘Take Me to Church’ and Shatners’ Oedipus Rex’ in the contemporary world.
Acting Skills
Polunin acts out the song with zeal and energy using chorographical ballet. His movements enhance Hozier’s song by bringing out its emotions which demand empathy and longing for something. Take me to church narrates the story of someone desperate for salvation in the contemporary world. The song begins when Polunin is lying down, alone in an empty barn. The ballet dancer’s frequent moves increase the intensity of the song’s message with every rhyme and beat as the song proceeds. I feel like the most captivating movements of Polunin are the air leaps and crouches, which look like he is fighting with demons. In my view, the casts acting skills in ‘Oedipus Rex’ are not what modern people expect in production. However, Shatner enhances the play’s acting skills by using humor and differences in sound and pitch, making the drama entertaining.
The Performance Flow and Filming Enhancements
Both performances’ acting skills maintain a single and unbroken unity throughout the show. Polunin’s dance moves rhyme with every song’s beat, while his hand gestures demonstrate his inner feelings. Watching Polunin’s movements takes you through all the emotions and messages of the music according to Hozier’s intended message of salvation. For example, he points to the skies in the part where Hozier sings about heaven. The gesture enhances the song by describing the specific details of the song’s message. In ‘Oedipus Rex,’ the actors do not diverge from the play’s script because all characters act according to the original Oedipus story according to Sophocles. I think that filming Polunin’s performance will contribute to the song’s enhancement by providing a good background that creates the song’s somber mood. Likewise, filming ‘Oedipus Rex’ could bring more motion pictures and backgrounds which depict the ancient period. Filming the play can also enhance the costume designs and capture each character’s acting skills differently. I think the drama will be more entertaining by developing it into a film.
Costume Design
Polunin’s costume is remarkably stunning and effectively enhances the song’s story. He is almost nude, and the only garment covering his body is a torn pair of tights. The tights also have thin material, which portrays him as nearly bare. I think the visibility of his tattoos creates an appealing and sensual feeling during his chorographical movements. Polunin’s costume shows the period of Hozier’s song by depicting the current fashion trending in today’s world (Peirson-Smith & Hancock, 2018). The torn tights and half nudity enhance the song’s story by demonstrating the pitiful and struggling experiences of the narrator. Consequently, the half-nude costume shows how the song’s writer bares his burdens and is ready for salvation because he has nothing to hide.
In Willman Shatner’s adaptation in 1957, the drama focuses on costume design and colors to enhance the play since the acting still involves ancient transformations. Shatner’s costume and makeup set the film’s mood, arousing different emotions such as pity, empathy, and humor (Peirson-Smith & Hancock, 2018). The story of Oedipus depicts him as ruthless in the beginning. However, Shatner’s production has all cast wearing face masks, bringing a different emotion to the crowd. I think that the costumes are funny, creating a lighter, which also enhances the characters’ roles, such as giving Oedipus a less ruthless aura.
Conclusion
In both performances, the performers acting skills are excellent, and they tell the story systematically and understandably. Although Shatner’s production still lies on the regressive side, the audience can tell the story’s meaning through the motions. Polunin’s performance shows the emotion of the songwriter and producer through his movements, costume, and makeup. The chorographical leaps and twists show his fight with inner demons, while his torn and almost nude outfit demonstrates his willingness for salvation. Shatner’s costumes narrate the story metaphorically, which evokes the audience’s mood and emotions. The audience can immediately identify the changes and relate to the scene’s mood without action or verbal communication, enhancing the play’s ancient setup.
Reference
Peirson-Smith, A., & Hancock, I. J. H. (Eds.). (2018). Transglobal fashion narratives: Clothing communication, style statements, and brand storytelling. Intellect Books Ltd. ProQuest eBook Central, Web.