Category: Historical Research

Making and Storing Special Props

3/28/2025

Our basement renovation is switching into high gear now. This started out so that I could have more space to store special, delicate props and musical equipment. But you know how it goes. Once you start one project, it impacts another place in the space, and pretty soon there's not a spot left that hasn't been touched.

Anyway, there is hope now that I will get a large storage closet to use for these special instruments from my show "Never Cry Wolf." The post below tells about my experience with making them

No Musical set in Ancient Greece could be complete without some authentic Greek instruments -- authentic looking at least. In my enthusiasm to help the cast immerse themselves into the ancient Grecian world, I have spent quite a bit of time creating a Cheyl's Lyre, an Aulos, a Pandouris, some Pipes of Pan, and Tympanum. These have been fascinating to learn about and wondering how they would actually sound.

From what I can imagine, they would not sound musical to our modern ears. However, I have great respect for the idea of using these unusual instruments as unique features for my upcoming production of "Never Cry Wolf." In Scene 5, the artisan character Altair the Magnificent, brings his Muses and Musicians to help him get in the mood for painting a set of Commemoration Amphora (the Greek vases famous for capturing scenes of Greek life from the ancient times.)

The production number "Set It for Posterity" allows the Muses opportunity to adjust the poses of the Politicians to help them look heroic for their portraits on the vases. The Musicians, of course, play their authentic replica instruments during this wild and wonderful romp complete with demonstrations of 1960's dance crazes and a rock 'n roll guitar solo. Yes, the instruments are key to this number!

The Pan Pipes and the Aulos are blowing instruments. The Pan Pipes were tubes of varying lengths blown somewhat like we would blow a harmonica today. In fact, they are considered the first mouth-organ. The Aulos is unusual because it is a double reed instrument with two sounding tubes. One of the tubes provided the melody and the other the drone for the harmony (probably an open 4th or 5th). It was a precursor to the bagpipes. From studying the drawings of these instruments from pottery and museum pieces, I decided that I could make stage replicas just using bamboo. I had my son cut up a bamboo placemat and a couple of bamboo tiki torch holders I scavenged from a thrift store. After tying them together with twine and rubber bands, they make amazingly authentic-looking, though non-sounding, prop instruments.

The Tympanun are simply variations of hand drums. I decided that Quaker Oats containers were the perfect size and shape. I painted them and added "skins" out of fake leather held on with glue and rubber bands. Seems to work out well. Sturdy enough for four performances, anyway.

The Pandouris is a type of lute with just 3 strings. I had my husband cut the shape of the sounding box and the neck out of an old length of a light-weight wooden shelf. I added sculpted insulation foam glued onto the board to create the shape of the sounding box. We added nylon fishing line strings using small dowels mounted to the board. We wanted her to be able to move around and pretend to play like a Rock Star, so we gave the pandouris a shoulder strap made from a macrame purse strap. She really got into the groove and rocked it, baby!

The Cheyl's Lyre is more interesting because it needed to look like it was made from a turtle shell and ibex horns. We took apart an old wooden crutch to imitate the shape of the ibex horns. The long screws and predrilled holes simplified the work to just cutting down the boards to the lengths we needed. We added sculpted insulation foam to create the "turtle body" sounding box and added strings. After painting, it looks amazingly good as an ancient lyre.

Being a musician, I wanted this Musical to incorporate the musical flavor of Ancient Greece as much as possible. It was fun researching before writing the music and as well the script, and it has been fun now creating the musical props. I am glad they will not sound, though. We don't want them interfering with the soundtrack now, do we!

The ace up my sleeve was our son Matthew who can really play the guitar!

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Old English Pantomime at Christmastime

11/18/2024

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Many years ago now, I was approached to write some songs for a collection of stories for an educational company that was teaching English to children in Asian countries. These stories were selected from some of the most famous folktales, fables and original tales from all over the world, but more particularly from England and Europe. One of the stories that caught my attention was "Dick Whittington and His Cat."  I had never heard of it before and was enchanted by its charm. As I did some research into its origin and history, I was amazed by how it came to be.

“Dick Whittington and His Cat” is a very old English tale presented first in Pantomime form in England about 1605. It is loosely based on the story of a real person Richard Whittington who was elected Lord Mayor of London three times, in 1397, 1406, and again in 1419.

English Pantomime was a much-loved popular entertainment for families from the English Renaissance (roughly 1520-1620).   Certain stock players were expected in English Pantomime --- the Every-man (a normal, likeable young man that things happen to), a Love Interest (usually a young, feisty, fair maiden), the Do-good characters (kind persons, fairy godmother, beneficent wealthy person), the Dame (an extremely fat, over–the-top character who has a garish taste in clothing and wears outlandish wigs and make-up — usually played by a man), the Villain (ruffian, bill collector, jealous witch, evil Rat King, etc.), a Comic Duo who provide slapstick comedy, and at least one Funny Animal.

Audience participation in the way of cheering, hissing, and booing was encouraged, as well as a sing-along during or at the end of the performance.

The great William Shakespeare himself used this framework for many of his comedies!

The idea of using this recipe to create a Children's Musical piece was intriguing. I pondered my approach for a couple of years. I did research on some of the many versions of this play that have been produced over the years. Apparently, it has been popular, particularly at Christmas time, in England for over 400 years! In my research, I found that it is usually presented by adult actors to an audience that may include children. But there are many versions in storybook form for children. Curious.

After more research, I found that Pantomime in England is traditionally done at Christmas time. It is considered family entertainment and any number of stories are presented -- usually folktales such as "Cinderella," "Robin Hood," "Jack and the Beanstalk", and many others. "Dick Whittington and His Cat" just happens to be one of the more popular stories.

This show in two forms (for smaller and larger casts) has become quite a favorite. It actually works very well for child actors to perform. Using the stock players and framework of Old English Pantomime gives such a richness of history to this exciting Children's Musical. Enjoy The Adventures of Dick Whittington any time of year!

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Making Interesting Musical Props

2/1/2024

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No Musical set in Ancient Greece could be complete without some authentic Greek instruments -- authentic looking at least. In my enthusiasm to help the cast immerse themselves into the ancient Grecian world, I spent a good month creating some Pipes of Pan, a Cheyl's Lyre, a Pandouris, and some Tympanum. These were fascinating to learn about and wonder how they would actually sound.

From what I can imagine, they would not sound musical to our modern ears. However, I have great respect for the idea of using these unusual instruments as unique features for my upcoming production of "Never Cry Wolf." In Scene 5, the artisan character Altair the Magnificent, brings his Muses and Musicians to help him get in the mood for painting a set of Commemoration Amphora (the Greek vases famous for capturing scenes of Greek life from the ancient times.)

The production number "Set It for Posterity" allows the Muses adjust the poses of the Politicians to help them look heroic for their portraits on the vases. The Musicians, of course, play their "authentic" replica instruments during this wild and wonderful romp complete with demonstrations of 1960's dance crazes and a rock 'n roll guitar solo. Yes, the instruments are key to this number!

The Pan Pipes are a blowing instrument. The Pan Pipes were tubes of varying lengths blown somewhat like we would blow a harmonica today. In fact, they are considered the first mouth-organ.

The Tympanun are simply variations of hand drums. I decided that Quaker Oats containers were the perfect size and shape. I painted them and added "skins" out of fake leather held on with glue and rubber bands. Seems to work out well. Sturdy enough for four performances, anyway.

Being a musician, I wanted this Musical to incorporate the musical flavor of Ancient Greece as much as possible. It was fun researching before writing the music and as well the script, and it has been fun now creating the musical props.

I am glad they will not sound, though. We don't want them interfering with the soundtrack now, do we!

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Old English Nursery Rhyme Opener

1/23/2024

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Old English Nursery Rhymes were a way to teach language skills to the very young in an age when the vast majority of people were illiterate. These little rhyming songs toyed with alliteration, modulation and rhythm, and educated by putting daily life situations into easy to remember verse. Most of the rhymes were light-hearted and comical and some even made some serious or even gruesome situations comical. (Think of "Ring-a-ring a Rosie" that was actually about the realities of dealing with the Black Death.)

As an Opener for "The Adventures of Dick Whittington," I wanted to include the entire cast in singing authentic English Nursery Rhymes of the Elizabethan period (circa 1605). The children are drawn out onto the stage by the Narrators who introduce them. They come on in four small groups each singing a separate Nursery rhyme. Group 1 dances on singing "Here We Go 'Round the Mulberry Bush." They sing and do the actions twice through. Group 2 enters a few bars later singing and dancing to "Do You Know the Muffin Man." Then a few bars later, Group 3 enters singing and dancing to "London Bridge is Falling Down." Finally, the last group of boys comes on singing "Adam Had Seven Sons." Each group sings their song through twice, and then sits down, leaving Group 4 singing alone to finish.

Singing four unrelated songs at the same time is called a Quodlibet. This is an ancient form of what we would label Partner Songs today.

The songs work together because they are sung in the same key, have similar length and follow a similar chordal structure. They may or may not have the same meter however. For example, "Mulberry Bush" is 6/8 where the other rhymes are 2/4, but because the heavy beats in each rhyme are duple, the patterns work well together.

Each time I have done this show, "The Adventures of Dick Whittington," the "Nursery Rhyme Quodlibet" was everybody's favorite number. I have also heard of Elementary school choir directors using it as a fun warm-up song. I think knowing some of the backstory of singing nursery rhymes makes singing this number historically relevant even today. As an exercise for chorus rehearsals, these songs sung at the same time are a helpful way to encourage learning part singing in a fun way!

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Pieces of Music

4/4/2023

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Once when I was seeking some guidance for an arrangement, a noted composer gave me this bit of advice. He said not to worry about revisions. Our compositions are called "pieces" because we may go back and fix different fragments any number of times. How true that is. I often go back and rewrite bits to better suit my performers. Sometimes I write in new characters and augment the story lines. Then I may feel that the new character needs his own song, and so forth.

You just never know in Children's Theater who will come out for your show. Sometimes a talented kid appears out of the blue. Their abilities may trigger ideas that start the creative juices flowing. Once that happens, there is simply no turning back. New characters, new story lines, new scenes, new songs, or at the very least, new pieces of the music must be fixed.

Then again, as a composer, you may have need to use bits and pieces of your music for other purposes. I was given an assignment to make short videos of exhibits in the Daughters of the Utah Pioneers Provo Pioneer Museum. The Museum Director knows a lot of interesting stories behind the various exhibits that other docents may not. So, I followed her around the museum catching snippets of her explanations.

Sometimes knowledgeable docents are not present when visitors come. So, this is an effort to allow the museum to be enjoyed even if the visitor must observe the exhibits mostly on their own. These videos point out certain highlights to be sure not to miss. The other hope is that the English and Spanish transcripts may help visitors from other countries. They might even take a picture of the text with their phone and access Google Translate if they need a different language.

My task was to edit the material into very short videos to put onto tablets so that the visitors can get a brief tour of exhibit highlights before they go off wandering on their own. The videos seemed like they needed musical underscoring for the title slides. So, I have used little 4 to 7 second bits of some of my Musical Theater and Choral pieces. Why not? I control the copyrights for these original pieces of music. So, we surely will not get into licensing disputes.

This is one of the short videos we have created for the Tour Highlights of the Museum, the Children's Corner Case. The music comes from "The Adventures of Dick Whittington" and incorporates an Old English Nursery Rhyme "London Bridge is Falling Down." It seemed appropriate.

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Doing Historical Research, Trying to Avoid Pitfalls

10/5/2022

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The teacher in last night's Zoom class was explaining about how to get the most out of doing historical research and not succumb to its pitfalls. She pointed out many places to go to do research --- city and university libraries, books, articles, newspapers, museums, the Internet, historical places and interviewing people with expertise. Any or all of these resources can help provide the background information you need to write your Historical Fiction book. (Disclaimer: I am not writing a novel, but I have done a lot of historical research when writing Children's Theater Musicals.)

Our teacher, Katherine Cowley, also told us that we could easily get drawn into some Black Holes. One source can lead to another and on to another and another and then they can lead to an abrupt end. It is so easy to get all absorbed in time wasting endeavors and never get on to writing. Or, it is just as easy to follow leads that go off on tangents that really have no bearing on your original topic.

Just yesterday, I found myself down a rabbit hole. I was looking in my own Family Tree for any connections to Welsh ancestry. I kept checking family lines and found myself going back for generations further than I have ever seen connections go before. It is obvious that a lot of work has been done in the past few months. I was fascinated how one line of generations had been linked from England to northern Europe, to the steppes of Asia, and down into the Holy Land at about the time of Christ. Amazing!

I cannot take any credit for that work. I can only thank the people who have been doing this genealogy! But true confession, the hours I spent tracing those family lines had nothing to do with finding a Welsh connection in the 1800s. So though it was interesting information, I wasted a lot of time.

Our teacher told us that it is best to set limits to how you do your historical research. That will help you know how to use it. All along the way you judge your findings by how it will fit the GENRE, serve the PLOT, develop the CHARACTERS, flavor the STYLE, or express the POINT OF VIEW. She also encouraged us to get the most out of our research by making it do double duty. Let it reveal the characters and their relationships, as well as impact the plot and setting. And we shouldn't worry about using too many details. We can gloss over irrelevant facts.

All of my Children's Theater Musicals required good historical research. "Stone Soup" is set in the Old West, so I studied about pioneers in the 1860s. The setting for "A Successor to the Throne" is in ancient China. "Never Cry Wolf" is set in ancient Greece. "Parizade's Quest" is in ancient Persia. "The Country Mouse and the City Mouse" has a definite 1950's vibe. "The Musicians of Bremmen" is set in Germany in the Middle Ages. "The Three Billy Goats Gruff" is modeled on folktales and music of Norway. "The Tale of Chicken Licken" draws on popular musical styles from many decades.

I get excited when doing the research for a new project. One of my favorites was doing the research for "The Adventures of Dick Whittington." I learned about life in London during the Renaissance. I learned about clothing and architectural styles and even about Nursery Rhymes and Sea Chanties that were popular at the time. Experimenting on doing Old English Pantomime circa 1600 AD was probably the most fun of all. I was surprised that even the audience Sing-Along worked for that show! Good Historical Research is the best secret ingredient to making the recipe a success!

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Making and Storing Special Props

Old English Pantomime at Christmastime

Making Interesting Musical Props

Old English Nursery Rhyme Opener

Pieces of Music

Doing Historical Research, Trying to Avoid Pitfalls

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