VH1 Lesson for Music Classes, Grades 7-12 VH1’s “Movies That Rock”: Moulin Rouge VH1 Music Studio Cable in the Classroom Lesson 3

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Note to Teachers: The programs viewed in conjunction with these lesson plans may include references, consistent with the eras portrayed, to substance abuse, violent acts, and topics of a sexual and/or political nature. Because this may be considered inappropriate for classroom use in some communities, you are encouraged to review the programs before presenting them to your students, and if necessary, choose those sections that enhance your lesson and are acceptable for use in your classroom.

While this lesson can be completed by viewing the necessary portions of the programs, the most benefit and enjoyment of them will be gained by having students view the opera “La Bohème” and VH1’s “Movies That Rock”: Moulin Rouge in their entirety in preparation for these activities.

Objectives

• Students will explore the similarities and differences between the opera "La BohËme" and the movie "Moulin Rouge."
• Students will gain understanding of set construction needs for both a movie and a staged opera production.
• Students will experiment with period costume design.

National Standards:
6. Listening to, analyzing, and describing music.
7. Evaluating music and music performances.
8. Understanding relationships between music, the other arts, and disciplines outside the arts.
9. Understanding music in relation to history and culture.

Materials

• VHS VCR Player
• Television
• VH1's "Movies That Rock": Moulin Rouge
• Web-based lesson materials
• Pencils and paper (students)
• Chalkboard, overhead projector, chart, etc.
• Teacher selected video of a traditional performance of "La BohËme" (recommended: San Francisco Opera, 1989, Tiziano Severini, conductor)
• If above video is not available, a teacher selected audio recording of a traditional performance of "La BohËme" may be substituted (recommended: RCA Records, Sir Georg Solti, conductor)
  
  
  Prior Knowledge:
  
• Students have a basic familiarity with the musical genres of opera and movie musicals.
• Students have watched the opera "La BohËme" and VH1's "Movies That Rock": Moulin Rouge in their entirety. (To complete this lesson, students must watch at least the portions of the VH1 program required in Lessons one and two, and at least Acts I and IV of "La BohËme.")
  
  
  

Procedures

1. Show VH1's Movies That Rock: Moulin Rouge, from the beginning through the introduction of the dramatic idea presented by the actors Ewan McGregor and Nicole Kidman in her boudoir, and the final scenes, approximately the last 30 minutes of the program; and show teacher selected video of "La BohËme," at least Acts I and IV. (If students have already viewed these entire programs, this step may be omitted.)

2. Lead students in discussing the characters of the opera and the general storyline. Use the following as needed:

Marcello, a painter, Rodolfo, a poet, Colline, a philosopher, and Schaunard, a musician; these four "bohemians" share a residence Benoit is their landlord
Musetta, a flirt, is Marcello's "sometimes" girlfriend
Mimi is a seamstress who suffers from tuberculosis; she also lives in Benoit's building
Alcindoro is a councilor of state, and one of Musetta's "gentlemen"

The storyline of the opera is one of love and Bohemian life in Paris in the 1830s. The threads tying the characters together are those of love, friendship, poverty, and in the case of the four roommates, their art. Mimi is a lonely seamstress who is very ill, and Rodolfo is a poor poet. They meet on Christmas Eve and fall in love. A crowd of friends joins together to celebrate Christmas, during which all characters become acquainted. Musetta and Marcello have an ongoing and tumultuous relationship, as do Mimi and Rodolfo later in the opera, although the two couples love each other deeply. Mimi's illness progresses, and she spends her dying moments with her love, Rodolfo.

3. Guide students in discovering the similarities and differences between the opera and the movie. List the comparisons on the board, chart, etc., and have students make notes on their own paper. Some examples are:

Extensions

1. To create a unit with lessons two and three of this series, have students design sets and costuming for the final scenes that they wrote during lesson two.

Interdisciplinary Extensions

1. Social Studies: Have students research the Bohemian lifestyle in Paris during the 1830s, and the hippie movement of the 1960s in America. Their reports should show a comparison between the Bohemian lifestyle, and the lifestyle in America that led to the hippie movement in several large American cultural centers.

2. Art: Coordinate with the art and/or drama instructors to design sets and costumes for a production.

National Standards for Music Education
1. Singing, alone and with others, a varied repertoire of music.
2. Performing on instruments, alone and with others, a varied repertoire of music.
3. Improvising melodies, variations, and accompaniments.
4. Composing and arranging music within specified guidelines.
5. Reading and notating music.
6. Listening to, analyzing, and describing music.
7. Evaluating music and music performances.
8. Understanding relationships between music, the other arts, and disciplines outside the arts.
9. Understanding music in relation to history and culture.