制霸好莱坞

Roxy breathed a sigh of relief as she seemingly escaped the law by deceiving her husband Amos, making him believe he was the one who killed the thief. After a few sweet words, he took the blame for the shooting. She couldn't help but feel a mix of pity and amusement towards him, much like the audience might view his naivete. Roxy felt superior, as if she had Amos completely under her control, just like the audience laughed at her stupidity. She looked at him encouragingly, nodding with satisfaction, like a master admiring an obedient pug. However, as the police shone a spotlight of questioning on her, Roxy's body language shifted dramatically, from a proud and relaxed posture to one of shrinking and trembling.

"Sometimes I am wrong," Roxy sang, her voice slowly weaving through the chaotic and darkly humorous scene. She didn't look at the audience, but instead, she looked directly at the pianist, as if they were having a private conversation. The pianist remained impassive, as if oblivious to her presence, and continued to play. "Sometimes I'm right."

"She's really committed to the role..." Brantley thought, his initial contempt for Jenny now completely gone. "She has a beautiful, sweet voice. Okay, maybe she struggles with the high notes, but it works for this song. And she's in tune, at least. Her biggest strength is her complete immersion in the role."

For musical actors, a major challenge can be managing their interaction with the audience. While most stage performances require some level of engagement, particularly singing and dancing, musicals are different. Glancing at the audience is essential for keeping the audience engaged, but in a musical, if you look at them too directly it can feel like a "break" in the performance. It's equivalent to reminding the audience, "Hey, this person is performing for you; this is all pretend."

One of the greatest difficulties of musicals is to keep the audience fully immersed in the continuous flow of scenes, plot development, music, singing, and dancing, so that they temporarily forget that they are watching a show. If the audience realizes "this is all fake," they will likely find it more difficult to be swept away by the performance and begin to see the flaws that are inevitable in any production. Any performance, film or otherwise, has its imperfections, of course. A good movie, however, will keep the audience from focusing on these flaws, so they become fully immersed in the characters and the plot.

Roxy's performance was the kind that drew people deeply into the play. This song was like a whisper between Roxy and the audience, revealing her feelings for Amos. Jennifer's singing was on key, and her performance was restrained. She avoided excessive eye contact with the audience, instead singing with a hint of self-pity while the piano played softly. From her singing and body language, you could easily read her emotions: she was smug, knowing she had such a loyal and submissive man at her beck and call, a testament to her feminine power. Because of Amos's devotion, she felt attractive, which made her performance feel narcissistic.

Her voice was not a show-stopper, but the whole performance was effortless. People were amused by her vanity, and also recognized Amos's loyalty. Roxy was extraordinarily beautiful, so beautiful that her vulgarity was almost beside the point, but she was also vain, foolish, and so vulgar that even her beauty could not redeem her.

The theater went silent as Roxy sang, and Brantley had to admit that Jennifer Jefferson was truly beautiful. He even felt that her beauty was a distraction. While the police were questioning Amos, Jennifer didn't move, but she did maintain her attention, and still managed to captivate the attention of the authoritative drama critic, who found it difficult to look away.

"JJ is so beautiful," Joan thought, far less concerned with the critical analysis. She was busy appreciating Jenny's every move, not wanting to miss anything. She would memorize it all, and then whisper to her mother when the scene changed. This song was a consolation for the fact that "Vanita" had no performance clips.

Despite proudly singing "Funny Honey" to celebrate her loyal dog Amos, Roxy's clumsy schemes could not deceive the police. They didn't even need a thorough interrogation. As soon as they discovered that the deceased was actually a furniture salesman, Amos himself exposed the fact that the person was not murdered.

Although Roxy denied everything, she still couldn't turn the tide. She pleaded with Amos repeatedly, but could not calm his anger. This desperation, her inability to find any support, made many viewers feel uneasy and uncomfortable. They felt they couldn't bear to watch anymore. They knew she was wrong, but they couldn't help but sympathize: even though she was foolish, it seemed like a shame that she was going to prison.

Soon, Roxy was put into prison uniform and nervously followed the guards into the prison. She met the warden, "Mom", in a song and dance performance. Roxy was a spectator on the edge of the stage, occasionally touched by the lights, most of the time in darkness.

"Well, the actress's performance is very good," Brantley thought, glancing absently at the dark area where Roxy was standing. "Mom's" singing voice is still so strong. She plays this role easily." From the dim light, he could see she was shocked by "Mom's" performance and was dazzled. She looked back and forth at the interaction between "Mom" and the female prisoners.

He suddenly had a sense of surprise. "It's so dark, but I can still feel her emotions. Isn't this girl's body language incredible? Most importantly, her performance is so natural. The guilt and timidity of a newcomer? Why isn't she nervous? There's no tension of "playing another person" at all… It feels like… it feels like she *is* Roxy!"

When he watched "CSI", he felt that Jennifer was simply playing herself. In her daily life, she was "Vanita," and that's why she was so skilled and charming. At that time, Brantley even speculated that Jennifer might be a former high-class prostitute who wanted to enter the entertainment industry. The expensive sexiness that wandered between politics and business was so natural that he had such an association. But now, Jennifer's Roxy is so natural, without any trace of acting at all – Brantley can't find any other explanation, because Jennifer Jefferson is only 21 years old, and is not married. Roxy's young womanhood, the stupidity and vulgarity in her speech and behavior, are definitely not her true colors.

He suddenly realized that he had completely ignored "Mom"'s song and dance. Brantley even felt guilty for a moment: he was a drama critic and should pay attention to the whole play, not just a new face. If he was completely attracted by the first song and couldn't even think effectively, what was the difference between him and those mindless fans and audiences who were just watching the show for fun?

Brantley glanced at his colleagues in a row with a guilty look, and found that at least half of them were not paying attention to "Mom". He even felt that the atmosphere in the venue was a little unstable.

At this time, "Mom"'s solo ended, and another highlight came: the announcer announced the appearance of the six female prisoners in the prison, and brought everyone a piece of the most famous group dance of "Chicago", "Cell Block Tango". In this song, the six female prisoners took turns to tell the story of their imprisonment. Each of them contributed a very powerful song and dance, which always mobilized the atmosphere and made everyone feel like they had eaten a visual feast.

Objectively speaking, Brantley thought the performance of the Shubert Theater was still of a high standard. He could not find any outstanding shortcomings in this scene. Dietrich's singing was still powerful and full of spirit, and her dancing was also very compelling. She was a very distinctive actress. But - he did not enjoy this feast as usual. His mentality was more like eating an appetizer: "Well, it tastes good… But when will Roxy come out?"

The audience probably had similar thoughts as he did. Brantley found that some of the audience actually left the room to go to the bathroom at this time – this would hardly happen in previous performances.

"That girl is simply magical," Brantley's colleague, New Yorker columnist Patri, muttered to him. Obviously, he was not fully appreciating this song and dance. "James Schubert has found a treasure."

For some reason, Brantley had a rebellious desire to sing against him. He said, "There are duets and duets."

"But you have to at least admit that "Roxie" will not be a problem for her," Patri said. "As long as "Nowadays" doesn't mess up too much, this girl is at least the most promising newcomer in the past 10 years."

"Roxie" is Roxy's second solo, describing her yearning and ambition for fame. In essence, she is still very narcissistic. Judging from Roxy's performance in the first song, this difficulty is no problem for Jennifer.

After the tango in the cell, Velma appears again. Roxy accidentally overhears her conversation with the warden's "mother". The warden is willing to help her get out of prison and let her resume her old job, and she will profit from it. Roxy seems to see a glimmer of hope of getting away with the crime. She quickly catches up with Velma and starts their first scene.

"Ah, Miss Kelly." Roxy pushes a cart full of toiletries. "I have your personal belongings here - I'm happy to help you."

Velma snatches her lace underwear and reflexively wants to tip her, but Roxy blocks her. "No, no, it's just a small favor." Velma doesn't care. She turns around and wants to leave, but Roxy catches up with her. "Hey, listen, can I ask you something?"

Velma turns around impatiently and looks Roxy up and down. Roxy seized the opportunity and continued, "Do you know Harrison, the prosecutor…"

At some point, Brantley's brows had been furrowed more and more, and he began to feel uncomfortable: In fact, he had had a vague feeling before, but now this rivalry made everything more obvious.

In this scene, Velma is everything Roxy yearns for. She is heavily made up, dressed in gorgeous clothes, has a domineering spirit, is generous, and is high above everyone else. She is completely a successful person in Roxy's mind. And Roxy? Wearing prison clothes and messy hair, she looks like an ugly duckling. There should be a very obvious contrast between the two in terms of strength and weakness, so that the audience can feel the contrast when the strength and weakness are reversed and Roxy becomes the strong one.

But now, what Brantley has been secretly worried about has happened – Roxy dominates the show.

It's not that Roxy didn't play her part well. Her uneasiness, nervousness, and hope were all played very naturally. Just like what she did just now, Roxy has always been in the role. She gives people a feeling that she doesn't know there are audiences in the audience, but just lives her life in a parallel space, and the audience is peeping at her through the transparent "fourth wall". Even if she looks at the audience, she doesn't "see" them and realize their existence, so now she is a very confused female criminal who wants to get away with the crime but doesn't know how to do it. There are two problems. First, Roxy is much more beautiful than Velma. Even if she is dressed in rags, objectively speaking, she is more beautiful than Velma. So this kind of strong and weak contrast is not so obvious. People always admire the strong, and this society worships beauty very much. If a fat woman wearing fur and a beautiful woman wearing school uniform walk together, more than 90% of the audience will not think that the fat woman is strong, but will think that she is ugly, and the beautiful woman is a lotus out of clear water.

Velma is not fat, but she is really ugly. Of course, there are beautiful women among black people, but she is not one of them. This is not her fault, but it is just a congenital limitation. So here gives the audience a sense of being out of play, and they will be instinctively confused: What is your strength, Velma? Aren't you just a dancer who makes a living by her beauty? Roxy is so much prettier than you, what's so great about you in front of her?

Then comes the question: Why can Velma become famous while Roxy is a nobody, isn't this unreasonable?

Of course, these thoughts may only be a flash, and then the audience will convince themselves: "This is a play!"

But it is this self-conviction that makes the audience out of the play, and the viewing mood is affected, no longer engaged, but looking at the play with a critical mood.

If this is still unavoidable, just because Jennifer is too beautiful, beyond the average level of Broadway, then the second point is indeed Velma's fault – or Roxy's fault. In fact, Velma's acting is not bad, and Dietrich's acting skills are also considered average on Broadway, but the only problem is that Roxy's acting is too good.

The more natural she was, the more stiff Velma's body language was, the more vivid her cautiousness was, and the more artificial Velma's superiority was. The audience could clearly feel that Velma knew she was acting, and she also knew that she was forcing this unreasonable plot. She even knew that the audience knew this, but she still insisted on forcing it.

The atmosphere of the show was already obviously destroyed. This sense of absurdity made many audience members discuss with their companions in a low voice. Brantley heard a few low comments.

"She is much prettier than her, and she also acted well."

"Hell, she also acted well? This is simply a comprehensive suppression, a horrible massacre."

This will be a big regret tonight, but Brantley is not going to mention this in the review. He doesn't think it's Dietrich's fault. She is excellent, but Jennifer Jefferson - this unknown girl is too inhuman.

"She is simply a monster." Thinking of Patri's comment, "That girl has a kind of magic," Brantley murmured. "She couldn't have just suddenly popped out of some café, could she?"

Like the audience of "CSI", he instinctively refused to believe that Jennifer was new to the stage. In Brantley's opinion, this level of performance could not be presented without thousands of stage trials.

After this rivalry, lawyer Billy and reporter Mary also performed their solos. In these two segments, Roxy did not appear. Brantley found that he could not concentrate and was always wondering in which segment Roxy should come back. Of course, Billy's actor was young and handsome, with good singing skills, and Mary's performance was also remarkable, but in front of Roxy, it was like a store bread encountering a French handmade dessert. Of course, most of the time you are satisfied with the bread, but when you have just eaten a luxurious dessert, you will naturally have no intention of appreciating the simplicity of the bread.

Brantley did not like the conclusion he was about to draw, but in the "days without Roxy", he had to admit: it seems that the whole thing is completely opposite to what he expected. It is not that Jennifer Jefferson is not worthy of the Shubert Theater, but that the "Chicago" troupe is not worthy of her performance.

#Compared to the entanglement of the critics, the psychology of the ordinary audience is much simpler. Jon and her mother originally came to see JJ. Jenny performed well, so of course they enjoyed it, but they also understood that there were many other people's roles in the musical, and they could watch it with a tolerant eye - because in their hearts, JJ's performance was better than others, which was something worth being happy about, so they didn't mind the phenomenon of the opponent's performance overshadowing the other songs, but could appreciate the charm of the other songs. Jon decided to come and see it a few more times, even if she had to work part-time for it. JJ was a treat to her eyes and the highlight of the whole show, but the performances of others were also good, and the level was very good in general.

As for the passers-by attracted by Jenny's poster, they all felt that it was worth the money. Their mentality was somewhat similar to Jon's. The signature beauty was really beautiful, and her singing and dancing were also very charming. They couldn't tell what was good about her, but they just couldn't look away. They were also particularly looking forward to her performance again. As for other songs, some people could appreciate them calmly, while others just treated them as garbage time and just let it go. But anyway, they were satisfied with the beauty, and they didn't insist on being able to immerse themselves in the story.

The mentality of old drama fans was more like Brantley. They expected an excellent performance that was fascinating and made you immersed in the play from beginning to end. Although they now felt that Velma's dramatic performance was particularly poor and she didn't get into the play at all, if it weren't for her good singing and dancing, it would have been a failure of the whole show. But at least there was a very big highlight, Roxy, who made people reluctant to look away.

Therefore, the rhythm of the whole show was Roxy's appearance - the whole audience held their breath - Roxy's exit - some people relaxed, some people continued to be fascinated - Roxy was in the human background - many people ignored the spotlight and still looked at her, and the rhythm passed. Most of the audience didn't know what was so good about her performance, nor did they know why they liked her. They only knew one thing: they thought she was charming and eye-catching, and they wanted to see Roxy and wanted to see more of her.

Many of them had decided to remember the name of the actor on the poster when they went out, so that they could search it after returning to see if Roxy had any other works.

After waiting "very patiently" for more than 20 minutes, Roxy's second solo dance finally came. The audience suddenly became energetic. Some people changed their postures, some sat up straight, and some began to adjust the focus of the telescope… Everyone's attention was focused on the stage, paying attention to Roxy's changes.

Before this, Roxy and Billy had performed a duet puppet dance - Lawyer Billy was dismissive of Roxy at first. In order to get his defense services, Roxy needed to take out 5,000 yuan first. In order to survive, Roxy had to find her husband Amos, and once again used sweet words to coax him to take out all his savings and go to beg Billy for help. This scene between Roxy and Amos also aroused many people's sighs with smiles: if such a thing happened in real life, Roxy would definitely be denounced as shameless, but because it is a drama, the audience is much more tolerant of her moral requirements. Many people think that "it is no wonder that Amos was deceived. For a man like him, it is a great fortune to marry a beauty like Roxy, and it is reasonable to give everything for her."

After getting Billy's help, Roxy was quickly packaged as a rich lady who went astray and was abducted and eloped by Amos. Billy manipulated the media and transformed the vulgar Roxy into a lovely and beautiful lady. This plot was reflected by Billy manipulating Roxy like a puppet. Roxy's dancing skills also made experts nod their heads in approval - this kind of dance is a test of physical expression. For example, Jennifer's performance was quite good, without any unnecessary small movements, and the joints turned stiffly and rigidly, which was more convincing than the same singing segments they had seen before.

"We Both Reached the Gun" is also a classic song. Billy sang it very well and performed well. There were many red lines on the scene, and the performance of the accompanying reporters was remarkable. This dance aroused some spontaneous applause, but soon, the audience quieted down again and immersed themselves in the story again.

Billy's packaging was a great success. Roxy became famous all over the city and even the country overnight. Her used items were auctioned at a high price, and Billy got his own compensation of 5,000 US dollars, in full, not a penny less. Roxy's net worth is even more than before she went to prison. She received fan letters and accepted interviews from newspaper reporters. She has completely become a star in the women's prison, completely surpassing Velma. Now, the media's interest has completely turned to Roxy, and no one pays attention to Velma anymore. In Roxy's view, she finally got a blessing in disguise and her luck has turned. Her day of fame is just around the corner.

"Roxie" is a solo that appeared in such a background. Roxie, who thought she had finally gotten her wish, leaned against the prison door and chatted with the warden "Mom", who had just proposed to arrange for her to participate in the tour. "You know, I used to date a rich smuggler. He always boasted to me how rich he was - ugly people like to do this."

Just like Jenny conquered Agata with this solo dance, as Roxie giggled and took off her prison uniform, revealing the silver dance skirt underneath, the audience's attention was firmly drawn to her. Before this performance, Jenny was either wearing prison uniforms, pajamas, or conservative clothes for decent women. This was the first time she wore a revealing and sexy short dance skirt, showing off her slim figure to everyone.

In the strong light, she looked taller than usual, but she was thinner than the average person, so her figure was almost perfect. Although her face could not be seen clearly, her strong beauty had left an impression in people's minds. They clearly knew that they were watching a very beautiful actress - a very beautiful, ignorant, vain, and vicious snake beauty who had dreams of becoming famous.

For the audience, beauty was justice. Even though Roxy had killed people, looked down on her husband Amos, and even used his sexual performance as a laughing stock to please the audience, they still couldn't help but be moved by the strong charm she exuded. What's more rare is that in this scene, Roxy treated the audience as an imaginary audience. She told jokes to them, expected them to laugh, and pleased them. To put it crudely, she was flirting with them. She switched back and forth between her delirious fantasies and her attention to the audience's reactions. This was not only Roxy's daydream, but also the first time she had directly interacted with the audience since the beginning of the show.

When she was immersed in the world of the role, she was already charming. Now, Roxie's charm was concentrated on the audience. She danced lazily, confidently, and arrogantly, as if she was a queen who was high above, and all the audience should be fascinated by her and cheer for her loudly. She twisted her waist to the whispered "Roxie" of the dancers. People could vaguely see the hook of her red lips through the strong light, and imagine what kind of intoxicated expression was on that charming face. In their imagination, Roxie's performance was more perfect, her beauty was more moving, and as if captured by Roxie's delusion, all the audience felt a little annoyed: Why can't we see her face clearly? Why is the song so short? Why does it feel like it has just started, but it has already come to an end?

The lights around dimmed, and the spotlight focused on Roxie. She opened her hands from bottom to top, as if to embrace the world in them. She was very proud, and closed her eyes with a high-pitched voice. Her singing became higher and higher. "Roxie!"

With a snap, the lights dimmed, and the stage fell into darkness. The whole audience seemed to be in a very short shock: they were so into the play that the disappearance of the lights scared them.

Brantley suddenly found that he had been watching with his mouth open the whole time. He blushed a little and looked around inconspicuously: Fortunately, no one noticed him. Otherwise, he must have looked like a dead, fat, pig who was so obsessed with beauty that he was on the tongue. He was exactly the audience group that Roxie was targeting, the kind of vulgar and lustful middle-aged fat men.

He blinked a few times, trying to make a conclusion about Roxy's performance, but found it difficult: this was a relatively difficult jazz solo dance, which required singing, dancing and dialogue at the same time. It was difficult to perform smoothly without sufficient stage dominance, and it was also the most difficult part of the whole show that tested Roxy's skills. As a critic, he should of course observe her performance with a harsh eye, find the highlights and flaws -

but… he had completely forgotten it just now. Brantley took out a handkerchief and wiped his sweat: he had to admit that he had been completely fascinated by Roxy and became a simple audience.