Dreamgirls was at the Jefferson Performing Arts Society, or JPAS, on Saturday the 16th, at 7:30 at night. This was a fabulous musical, and the venue fit perfectly with the storyline of the musical. I loved the venue because the musical is about people performing and when you are actually sitting in a theatre, watching people perform, it makes you feel as if you are actually in the musical. I knew I would like the venue because I saw a different play two years ago at the JPAS theatre. Both of the musicals that I have been to at the JPAS have taken my breath away, they were astounding.

First, the costumes, scenery, and props were so beautiful and intricate. The costumes, scenery, and props also really helped make the story flow along and fit in with the movie. The costumes were very true to what they were like in the movie, but were not the exact same as the ones from the movie. The scenery and backdrops were very cool and really caught my eye because each piece was so unique and beautiful. The props fit in with the scenery pieces, too. For example, if they wanted to show backstage, they would have the scenery and backdrops look like the machines and old props behind stage. The props would be clipboards, ropes, speakers, or even an old costume rack. The details on the scenery were so cool and I loved how the props were exactly like what would be backstage of a play or musical. All together, the props, scenery, and costumes fit together very nicely and created a beautiful visual for guests.

Second, there were many songs in this musical. Certain songs I truly loved, while the others I did not like as much. Some of the performers sang their lines and so we learned what the musical was about through the music. When I listened to the songs I felt happy and intrigued, but I did feel sad during some songs. I felt bad for some characters at a certain point in the musical, when an unexpected and bad event would happen. Even though some songs were sad, others were so fun and upbeat. At the musical, I also pictured bright colors while I listened to the songs, because there were many different colors on stage. There were several songs that have a significant meaning; for example, there was a song named “One Night Only.” This song is about how the three dreamgirls have one shot to do the best they can, and win a competition. I love this song because it is so true, you only have one life and you have to live it to the fullest. Overall, the songs really blew me away and made me feel several different emotions.

Next, were the different instruments. All of the instruments were located in the pit, which is not onstage. I was on the third floor of the JPAS theatre, so I had a clear view straight into the pit. There were several instrument families playing different songs, throughout the musical. For example, the strings, woodwinds, and percussion instruments were all playing. I could see violins in the string section; however, I could not see if there were any cellos. From my seat I could also see, flutes, clarinets, and cymbals. Also, there were many different types of drums. There was a drum set, and also a big timpani drum. All together, the instruments sounded so good together. I loved when they all came together how they were in perfect unison, yet I could also hear the different instruments playing their own parts. Not every instrument played all the songs because some songs were slower and less upbeat than the other songs.

Finally, the storyline was true to the storyline in the movie, so this musical was easy to follow along with. My friends and I had watched the movie a week prior to us going to see the musical. If I am being completely honest, the movie was definitely slower paced and was not the most exciting thing to watch. I felt the complete opposite about the musical version, though. I loved how it all came together and was fun, but still followed the storyline like the movie did. The characters were also the same as they were in the movie which made it easy to understand what was happening, who was talking, and when that specific character was talking. One thing that did make my friends and I a little disappointed about Dreamgirls, was that since we were on the third floor of the JPAS theatre, it was definitely hard to hear some of the lines, when a character was talking. For example, when one character was talking directly to another character it was harder to hear, rather then a group of people singing together. Even though we could not hear as well, we still mostly knew what was happening because we knew how the musical would play out and end.

Overall, I fell in love with the musical Dreamgirls. I would definitely go see this again, and would recommend it to anyone who loves fun, upbeat, and sassy musicals. Dreamgirls made me feel like I was in the musical watching each of the performances and judging them. I would rate the Dreamgirls a perfect score, overall. I learned so much from this experience. One important thing that I learned is to not tell my mom that I need to see this musical last minute, so maybe we can find better seats and hear a lot better.