KING LEAR: MUSIC TO WATCH A KINGDOM CRUMBLE BY

   I have finally finished compiling the playlists that my juniors created for King Lear. They are amazing! I made a list of the most important or intriguing characters: King Lear, Gloucester, Edmund, Edgar, Poor Tom, the Fool, Oswald, Cordelia and Kent. In groups the students discussed what music their character would appreciate. Each student in the group contributed at least one song to their list and defended it.  I knew it was good when I saw that the Fool listened to Queen right after Black Veil Bride.  Below is the link to the master list of all songs on playlist.com. I also compiled a document with  the mini-lists by character, which actually more clearly represents the accuracy of each character and music. 

   Why did I like this project so much? We had fun! There was lively argument throughout and also respect for each other. The mixtapes are fun to hear and represent the characters--you know so much about someone when you hear their music, don't you? Music can be as revealing as a personal reading list, I think. I got to know my students better because of that.  They also practiced their skills at close reading and style of characterization.  We also learned the difference between which music represented OUR impressions and which tunes were the songs the character would have chosen themselves. This last piece seemed to tap into the performance aspect of drama: we got into the heads of these people, I think.  Now I want to create some playlists of us: what was the last song you heard as you arrived at school today?

Complete project info and support:

MUSIC TO WATCH A KINGDOM CRUMBLE BY...KING LEAR 2011 @ ST MARK'S