![]() The Christmas Party, for example, suggests the feast in Albert Herring, a much bleaker opera than most realize ( read more here). For all its faults, Britten learned a lot from Paul Bunyan. The many numbers like the Lumberjacks Chorus, The Quartet of Swedes, the Cook's Duet and Tiny's Lament rattle off cheerily but in such profusion the second half of the operetta starts to feel forced. (read more here) In Paul Bunyan, he resurrects it for grown-ups, with even more punch.Īll the numerous cameo parts and choruses were deftly sung and blocked, keeping the pace lively even in the Second Act where the inventiveness in the music starts to pall Britten had written "popular music" such as the Cabaret Songs (to poems by Auden) so satirical pastiche came easily to him. Britten employed this Siegfried/ Wood Dove imagery in his The Sword and the Stone (1939), written for children. Just as Siegfried is led into the forest by a wood dove, we in the audience are being beguiled, led into a forest of dreams. The all-important "wood dove"theme was played with suitable menace. Here, we could hear snatches from Peter Grimes in embryo, such as the slithering snake-like bassoons, and the way lines stretch along the range of voices in the chorus. Sunderland also doesn't indulge in cute for its own sake. The Blues Singers aren't camped up, nor are the hard-working labourers in the camp trivialized by being dressed up to look like animals. The "Trees" in the Prologue were shown as simple planks of wood. Liam Steel directs, using a set designed by Anna Flieschle where the human qualities of the opera come into greater focus. Conducted by Philip Sunderland, the score is revealed in all its gawky glory but without mawkish easy laughs. A professional cast is used, lifting standards way above well-meaning amateur earnestness. Fortunately, the ETO production minimizes kitsch and maximizes meaning. Paul Bunyan needs to be understood on its own terms and in the context of Britten's creative development. Paul Bunyan is a heroic myth, not reality. Fundamentally the piece isn't about Americana at all, and attempts to present it as such only damage its reputation. She wrote The Operas of Benjamin Britten, tye standard reference. ![]() " From homespun culture manufactured in cities, Save us, animals and men" HERE is a link to Claire Seymour's exceptionally penetrating review, in Opera Today. If anything, modern audiences are even less likely to get Paul Bunyan, accustomed as we are to gung-ho feelgood depictions of Americana, such as Rodgers and Hammerstein's Oklahoma!, Aaron Copland's Appalachian Spring, cowboy movies and TV. When it premiered in 1941, audiences couldn't figure it out. Written on a word document the lesson is easy to print off and also to edit if necessary.The English Touring Opera's Paul Bunyan.makes an excellent case for Britten's most misunderstood opera. Additionally, the content and format of the questions will serve as a beneficial practice for standardized test-taking. The fifth page is the answer key.Ĭompleting and discussing the lesson will help your students have a better understanding of tall tale features. The third paragraph relates how Paul Bunyan acquired his pet, Babe the Blue Ox and what Babe did to help Paul’s logging operation. This tall tale character used a magic pen that never ran out of ink and a magic eraser that only erased mistakes. ![]() The second paragraph tells about the record-keeper at Paul Bunyan’s logging camp named Johnnie Inkslinger. It summarizes how he grew in size and strength and how he became a lumberjack who started a logging camp. ![]() The first paragraph introduces the tall tale hero, Paul Bunyan. There are 10 reading comprehension questions in all. The questions deal with 1) recognizing author’s purpose, 2) distinguishing fact from fantasy, 3) determining main ideas, and 4) identifying details. ![]() It consists of three substantially-sized paragraphs - each followed by 3 or 4 questions.Įight of the questions are multiple-choice, and two of the questions are short answer. This tall tale lesson about Paul Bunyan is four pages long including two drawings. ![]()
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