Cultural Event #1: The Drowsy Chaperone

The Drowsy Chaperone, a musical casted by the students at University of Wisconsin – Lacrosse in early March, was a comedic musical following the events of an upcoming wedding. The whole foundation of the play is the narrators playing a record of the audience, and the record describes some of the events happening before the wedding occurs.  The narrator often interjected and stopped the music, allowing time to describe the events or interacting with the audience.

My favorite part of the musical was in fact this narrator, as he brought a lot of entertainment and uniqueness to the musical. He started off the musical on a humorous note, talking to the audience about the feelings they were having just before the play started. I believe this introduction really loosened up the audience and got everyone into a happier mood, although it was almost slightly discomforting. His short interjections about his favorite parts of the story and his favorite tracks that he would play kept the audience awake, all while helping keep the pieces of the story together for those that were having a harder time understanding.

There were many aspects of this production which made it more interesting as a whole. The musical background made the play lively, and it was easy to be attentive with the common changes in sets. Also, the costumes the actors and actresses were wearing were goofy and exaggerated, which gave the musical the funnier and more entertaining tone. It was obvious that the musical was very well rehearsed and that all of the cast members were really enjoying themselves which added to the overall value of the play.

Going into the event, I didn’t know if I would like it or not. I have been to my fair share of musicals and plays, but my feelings about each one were very different than the last. I would not say I am easy to please in terms of musical productions, but I did find The Drowsy Chaperone very enjoyable. I commonly found myself feeling like the content of the play was humor that nearly everyone can relate to, making it a very entertaining production. I am glad I took the opportunity to see The Drowsy Chaperone and would gladly give another round of applause to everyone involved in the making of it.