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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Courtesy of Teens Read Too, November 28, 2007
This review is from: Everyone's a Critic (Drama!) (Paperback)
The cast from Orion is back in a sequel to Paul Ruditis' first DRAMA! story, The Four Dorothys (Drama!). Bryan, Sam, Hope, Holly, Alexis, and Belinda are all prepared for their next "big scene."
The school year is over for those at Orion, but just because academics are done does not mean acting is. During summer break a yearly, mandatory two-week theater camp begins, but instead of establishing a play, something new comes along.
Hartley Blackstone, a Broadway director, is using the two weeks to test all theater majors for a summer apprenticeship. To get this apprenticeship could be two lucky Orion students' big break.
During week one, everyone studies their individual monologues and performs for Hartley. After the performances, Mr. Blackstone critiques everyone's work, leaving nothing but shattered spirits. Now no one wants to go on with auditions.
In week two, Hope and her boyfriend are broken up. Done. Over. Which leads Bryan and Sam to hatch a plan to get Hope and her (ex) boyfriend back together.
This plan will take a lot of time away from Bryan once group auditions start. Will they be prepared? Who will win the summer apprenticeship?
Paul Ruditis' second DRAMA! book is very good. The whole time I was reading I thought, "this is like American Idol meets The Real World" (due to the singing and all of the drama in the book). I felt the story lacked a little in the middle, but was overall interesting to the end.
Reviewed by: Jeremey
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Drama Kings and Queens., May 19, 2008
This review is from: Everyone's a Critic (Drama!) (Paperback)
Ruditis' sequel to Drama! The Four Dorothy's continues the saga of Bryan Stark, privileged, gay teen, and his search to find himself. In this novel, Bryan and his best friends compete with other drama students during Orion High School's summer drama camp program for a coveted spot in Hartley Blackstone's Acting School.
The story is told from Bryan's irreverent and flippant point of view creating a quick read. Bryan interrupts himself with parenthetical asides to clarify himself or explain theatre lore or definitions. While having a gay narrator may turn off some readers, Ruditis includes plenty of heterosexual characters and plot lines to keep a variety of reader's interested.
The themes in this novel closely follow those of the first in the series. Bryan complains about favoritism, nepotism, and how the rich and famous get special treatment. He also points out that teachers often submit to the wishes of over-protective parents or face dismissal.
Ruditis accurately captures the rhythm and sarcasm often present in intelligent teens' speech; but Bryan and his friends toss about words such as phalanx and plethora that average high school students may not understand. Ruditis includes some out-dated references to Barry Manilow songs ("Can't Smile Without You") and the two Corey's of 1980's TV (Haim and Feldman), which also might be missed by contemporary teens.
The Malibu, California setting, the wickedly absurd extravagance, and the sarcasm with which the story is told will appeal to middle and high school girls. A third installment in the series, Encore, encore! is to be published in 2008.
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2.0 out of 5 stars
Not My Favorite Teen Story, July 15, 2011
This review is from: Everyone's a Critic (Drama!) (Paperback)
It's big news for the drama geeks at Orion University when Hartley Blackstone, a major Broadway producer and the creator of a major acting school in NY, plans to audition the students for two spots in his program. one boy and one girl will win. Bryan Stark, along with his two best friends Hope and Sam, are dying to get the spot, but they have to contend with the other talent in the school as well as some personal drama of their own. But when the Blackstone gives Bryan a scathing critique of his acting skills, Bryan is forced to wonder if the one thing he has spent all his time doing--acting--was a waste of time.
Whereas The Four Dorothys story was a mystery where Bryan mostly took a backseat, this book has Bryan front and center. This fact makes the story comparatively stronger. It has less exposition and allows us to really connect to the characters more closely.
There is still the issue of Bryan's closeted gayness, which again mostly gets skirted over, but at least he deals with some other issues. Mainly, the fact that his best friends have been in relationships with the soccer kids he doesn't like. Particularly his former best friend Drew, who was Hope's boyfriend for years before they suddenly, inexplicably break up.
Everyone's a Critic was by far the superior book, but the resolution felt lacking at the end of the book. It isn't bad and would probably connect well to people who have had their dreams shattered, but there are stronger teen novels out there.
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