Sonoma
State University
Language
Festival 2007
German Program
Cabaret Performance
We are very pleased to
augment our traditional Deutsch-Wettbewerb
with an exciting multilingual Cabaret event, which gives the different
language communities of the Bay Area an opportunity to stage a
multitude of creative performances in various languages. Once again, we
are hoping to attract both students and faculty who can perform as
musicians, dancers, actors, etc. If you and your students would like to
be represented in this part of the Language Festival, please send an email to
the representative of the SSU Language Clubs, Nick Firestone (firestni(at)sonoma.edu). Proposals will be evaluated by the SSU Language Clubs who are
organizing the cabaret, and candidates will be informed as soon as
possible thereafter, if they have been selected to perform. We welcome
participation by students of all language levels of language and
performance.
A note about
performing:
We encourage you to
present a piece that fits well into a cabaret. We are
looking for performances that are lively and that members of
the audience who do not understand the language you use will
enjoy watching, too. Please consider songs, dances,
traditional cabaret numbers, or other kinds of performances
that are fun, clearly acted out, and full of energy. We want
to see you enjoy your performance! Please note that
performances should not exceed 5 minutes in
length.
Ideas on how to get
your students interested in developing a cabaret proposal
and performing:
- Start with what your students know: do they sing,
dance, play music, etc.?
- Make sure they get credit for it: provide extra credit, or
make it part of a semester project
- AP or literature students could stage a text they have
been working on
- Beginning
students could sing simple songs (fun children's songs, i.e. "Auf
der Lauer, auf der Mauer..." or German pop songs)
- Any students, or a heterogenous group including teachers, family members, or friends, could put
together a trivia contest in the target language
- Lip sync or karaoke could be a fun exercise for
diction and a fun thing to watch (German Hip Hop? We have seen some great numbers in the past!)
- For any of the above, remember to:
- Face the audience;
- Project your voice, or use a mike;
- Practice using a mike;
- Ask about your venue (stage, floor covering,
etc.);
- Bring your props if you have any;
- Think about costumes; easy ideas can go far!
- Think make-up;
- Have fun!
- Have participants fill out a proposal form (form will be available on our SSU Language Festival site soon);
- Have them rehearse the numbers in class or at a school meeting; ask students for feedback and ideas for improvement.
- Above all: Viel Spass!
Back to German Contest | SSU Language Festival 2007
February 10, 2007 MG