Before class started, it was announced that it was the birthday of one of the kids in the class. Instead of singing the typical, and appropriate, Happy Birthday, we were instructed to launch into "Edelweiss." I'm not sure if this was in honor of the Sound of Music, or if this is a standard sing-at-birthdays song. I'm tempted to announce it is my birthday next week just to see what happens. So my class launches into a brilliant and wonderful rendition of "Edelweiss" (sarcasm very much intended). Who was the loudest singer? Our professor. He stood at the front of the class shouting at us in a deep baritone.
If that wasn't enough singing for one day, he then put the lyrics to "The Lonely Goatherd"on the projector and made us sing. This was also an acapella song and was sung wonderfully as well. Some of the other kids said their friends didn't believe we had sing-alongs in this class. But you really can't make this stuff up. We did in fact sing Edelweiss and the Goatherd in class yesterday.
After a real discussion and lecture about Rodgers and Hammerstein, we were shown the episode of Songs of Praise that dealt specifically with the Sound of Music. And guess who was features as an expert in the film? Our professor. So far, we have seen four different video clips, all of which featured him. I know he is one of the developers of the field of theology of the musical, but I am sure there are other people in the field now. Anyway, it is an interesting class and I hope the sing-alongs continue for entertainment value if nothing else.
We got to take a St. Andrews VIP coach bus to the theater in Edinburgh, so the bus ride was actually very nice. The show was packed. I guess matinees are good deals for school groups, so there were huge amounts of young children in the theater. The theater was also huge, so this translated into an extreme amount of young things walking around. Each kid was given a booster seat that made him taller than most of the adults. It made it hard to see around their heads, especially since none of them could sit still. (Note to parents, the Sound of Music is a REALLY long show.)
The singing was pretty good, and I really enjoyed the performance. It was also great to be in a theater and experience the show with the rest of the audience as well. (PEAC 314 that's another shout out to you guys). There were a lot of smiles on the faces around me during the whole show - it is such a different experience from watching the movie version alone or with a small group. The pit orchestra was great too. The trombone player was actually awesome. I liked him.
The ride back home took way longer than expected, partly because of traffic and partly because our driver didn't believe in driving in the passing lane. This meant that I missed the wind ensemble rehearsal I was going to try to go to. Hopefully I can still go next week. We also missed dinner in our dining halls, so Lauren and I went to a local pub for food. It was actually the best food (and beer) I've had since we got here. It was a real cheese burger that came with fries (chips) and a small salad! I ordered a Belhaven beer, and it was amazing. We stayed in the pub until 9:30 to take part in their quiz night. We did well the first half, which was quotes by famous people. Lucky for us a lot of the quotes were by American presidents. However, the second round (pictures of famous people) and the third round (British sport trivia) were pretty abominable. It was fun nonetheless and I think it would be a good place to go back to.
Taking a trip to Loch Ness this weekend, so I should have a lot to write about on Monday when we get back. Maybe I'll even have some pictures of Nessie!
www.livingwithlandmines.org
No comments:
Post a Comment