Assignment #2

Personal Reflection and Goal Setting

1.) I believe that I do have the traits of a good musical theatre student, although there is always room for improvement. Some specific examples include listening to other people in the group and adding input on what I think about how things could be improved. I'm always more than willing to add to the conversation (not  always the greatest thing), and always willing to give my ideas. This goes along with my second example, of being creative and imaginative. (Even if sometimes that means being a bit unrealistic..) I've always had a creative mind, and I love that in the musical theatre program, I can exercise that part of my mind and know that it is appreciated! (Well.. most of the time, anyway.) My last example would be that I try to stay on task, mostly because I know how annoying it can be when you are trying to get something done and no one else is focusing! I try not to be a distraction to others in the group, either. Of course, everyone gets a bit hyper at times and a bit distracted, but for the most part, my mind is usually focused on what we are learning.

2.) Three goals I have for myself in this course are 1- learn to hear harmonies better, 2- improve on my (minimal) dance skills, and 3- enjoy EVERYTHING about the musical (that includes Thursday 7:30 AM practices.)

     1- In the past year or so I have noticed that hearing harmonies has been coming more naturally to me. I really enjoy being able to find harmonies in my head to songs that I love! It is so fun hearing how everything fits together. But I would love to improve this skill with musical.This year, the harmonies are a bit harder for me. It's been a challenge being an alto most of the time, because I usually find soprano 2 harmonies easier. It's also been stretching my range lower. I would love to have my parts solid, so I can be a leader in my section. I can achieve this by practicing at home, keeping musical a priority in my life by not missing rehearsals, and by singing my parts while we learn choreography.

    2- I have always been a clumsy, uncoordinated person. Because of this, dance isn't the most natural thing for me. I have definitely gotten better, but like I said, always room for improvement! This year, I am in a lot of different dance numbers, and I am really excited for them, especially message in the music! I want to be able to put my best performance on for each of them, and to do this, I need to make sure I am at all practices, practicing on my own time, and paying attention during rehearsals.

    3- It's easy for me to be grumpy about early morning practices or rehearsals that seem like I don't need to be there, or egg costumes..... but who said anything about that???? So because it is my last year, I want to be able to enjoy every little thing about the musical experience! Although it is A LOT of work, and can be frustrating at times, it is so worth it in the end and the fun always outweighs the oh so very (extremely) long November practices. I can achieve this by always keeping a smile on my face, looking at the bright side of things, looking forward to the show, and drinking inhumane amounts of coffee at practices.

3.) I have definitely improved from Shrek. I am a leader in my section, always giving input, and musical is a much bigger priority in my life now. Like I said, I can hear harmonies easier, which is really helpful in musical. I also know that challenging myself is a good thing now, and that sometimes you just gotta grin and bear it. ("It" being a giant egg costume.. I  was literally bearing it, it wasn't light!!!) I enjoy musical practices so much more, and I get along with everyone better. I'm so happy that I joined musical last year, because I have made so many lasting friendships and developed my musical skills so much.