Your first lesson should always be the Mandatory Lesson or a review of that lesson. If you have time for only one other lesson, please make that a review of the synopsis (or plot line) of the play. Gigi is singing theater. For the history of this art form, go to this link. If you have time for more than one lesson, or if your students already understand the rules of live theatre, please feel free to choose one of the additional lessons. They are divided roughly by general subject matter, e. g. language arts, social studies, et cetera.

Language Arts
The story of Gigi may be familiar to your students as a movie. After seeing the play, have them compare and contrast the staged version and the movie. Have them write a paper discussing their opinion of which is better. Have them explain why.

Choose one of the characters in the story. Decide how you would change that part if you were asked to rewrite the story. Would you give that person a bigger role? a smaller one? make them nicer? meaner? When you have decided, write one scene with your “new, improved” character. Have your classmates help you to decide if your rewrite would improve the story.

This play takes place during a specific timeframe. Have your students rewrite it for some time in the far future. Have them explain the differences they have made. For example, how have they changed the place of a character in the class system, or what was done to the sets, costumes, et cetera. Have them justify their changes.

Rewrite/revise
Have your students revise or rewrite a portion of the play that they either did not like or that they felt would be stronger/funnier/better if written differently. (Synopsis) Have the remainder of the class offer opinions on whether they think the revision is an improvement.

Critique
Have your students write a column of criticism of the play. (Synopsis) Be sure they support their opinion with data from the performance. Make this assignment before they attend so they can be thinking about it as they watch the performance. Choices could include the music as performed by the orchestra, the music as performed by the vocalists (either collectively or individually), the sets, the staging and the directing. Have your students read several newspaper columns before they attend the performance so they can be familiar with the professional’s manner of critiquing.

Writing and Revising
This story has a very interesting and unusual “creation” story. Have your students trace its changes from the novella to the first film version, to the nonmusical Broadway play, to the 1958 musical film, and then to the final Broadway musical. Have them discuss their understanding of the changes that take place over time when a story is revised and rewritten. Have them decide which changes were made because of the need for staging, etc. and which one they think were the result of the changing times and the different people who did the revising. Have them look at a piece of their own writing and consider revising it for a play or film and discuss what changes they would make.

Author Study
Have your students compare and contrast the personalities of Alan Jay Lerner and Fredrick Loewe. Have them determine if they believe they were similar or different. Be sure they use evidence to support their claim. You may choose to have them offer an opinion about the probability of these two men collaborating successfully over time. What factors seem to have affected the actual collaboration? Did they work exclusively together or did they have other collaborators? Did they work alone?

Your students should understand that singing theatre is a collaboration between a composer (who writes the music) and a librettist (who writes the words). In this case, Lerner and Loewe were a very successful team. Have your students study several of their works and determine why they think this is true. They could compare and contrast Gigi with My Fair Lady.

Since Lerner went to Choate with J.F. Kennedy, your students might write a compare and contrast paper about the two men. Since Lerner’s father wanted him to go into politics that might be one interesting area to explore. Their interest in women might be another area. The fact that Lerner claimed his mother to be Catholic and JFK’s struggled in politics with being Catholic is another area of interest.

Social Studies
The leading men in the play are members of the upper class. Describe the various levels of “class” in one of the countries you have studied. This play takes place in France in 1900. If you have studied that era, use that for your reference. This is a society with several levels. Have your students research those levels. Have them decide if this is a “fluid” society or if a person’s class is fixed. What is the evidence?

Have your students compare and contrast the classes of that society with American society today. Are they the same or different? If different, what are the differences? What may the reasons be for those differences? How do those differences come about?

This story focuses on the training of a courtesan. This class of society to which these women belonged came to be called the demimonde (half world). Does such a class exist today? Are there other ways to be in a “half world” today? Was this a good life or a bad life for these women? What is your evidence?

This story takes place in France, mostly in Paris. Have your students research the Paris of 1900 and the Paris of today. Which buildings are still there? What caused some of the major changes? Is France still a monarchy? How and when did France finally change from a monarchy to a republic? How has France been linked to the United States in the past? (Another musical that they may be familiar with focuses on those events, Les Miserable. Another place to look is the article on Beaumarchais which accompanies the next production of the season, The Barber of Seville.)

Music
Lerner and Loewe have frequently been praised for how well the lyrics and music fit the characters and move the action. Have your students choose one of the songs from Gigi and analyze it to see if this is true. Suggestions are It's a Bore, I Remember It Well, Gigi, I'm Glad I'm Not Young Anymore. Note that only excerpts of the songs are included here. Complete versions can be found by searching the internet for "Gigi lyrics".

Art
Hold a discussion about the staging, including the scenery and costumes. Have your students choose a scene or a character that they would like to "dress." Have them present their work to the class, explaining why they chose that scene or character, what they did differently and why. Have the class comment on how the changes affect the play.

Have your students create a playbill to advertise this play. Decide in advance if they should use the performance you are to attend (or have attended) or if they should create one from the time of Voltaire, a possible date in the distant future, or other options. Another option would be to create a handbill.

Write a review of the costumes. Include such things as your opinion of their authenticity, their effectiveness, and how they help or hinder the success of the play.

Draw a new set of costumes for this play. Be sure to write a justification for the changes you make. Be sure to think of the constraints such as budget and ease of use by the performers. Also, costumes must be reused by different people at other venues (rentals).

Set Design
Design a new series of sets for this play keeping in mind the many and variety of locations in which the action takes place. Be sure to write a justification for your design. Remember, things such as budget and size of stage area affect which sets are used. Also, all sets must be portable as many companies rent sets and all companies must store their sets for reuse.

Careers
There are many people other than performers involved in this kind of production. There are two links to help you here. The first link Creating an Opera will tell your students about creating the performance itself. A number of people are involved in this process. The second link to Unsung Heroes will provide you with the people who are rarely, if ever, seen. Have your students look at this list and determine an area that interests them. Have them research the opportunities in that area and write a report on it.

Return to Gigi Home Page

Revised August 2010
Please credit Lyric Opera San Diego when using this material.