WRITING A MUSICAL

This program provides students in grades 3-8 with an opportunity to work with a theatre professional as they discover and apply the many art forms involved in creating a one-act musical adapted from a children’s story.

Program Overview

A professional performer and experienced theatre educator provides instruction two days a week in the classroom for a period of eight to ten weeks.  The classroom teacher remains in the room during each session and reinforces the learning objectives, maintains classroom management, and works alongside the theatre professional.  During that time, the theatre professional establishes the framework for creating a musical play, including enrichment exercises, demonstrations, and hands-on training.  The students learn the necessary components of musical theatre, as they write, “compose,” design, and execute their very own musical production.  They adapt a popular story for the book of their musical, write original lyrics for each song that compliment each character and advance the plot, while the theatre educator creates the musical score for their work.  At the end of the program, there is a staged reading of the musical with professional actors working with student actors.  Each student also receives a folder that includes:  a copy of the musical, a CD of the musical score, a participation certificate, and a thank you note from the teaching artist.

Curriculum

The program meets California state content standards for English-Language Arts, Music, and Theatre for grades 3-8.   Our curriculum teaches necessary skills in Artistic Perception, Creative Expression, Historical and Cultural Context, Aesthetic Valuing, as well as Connections, Relationships, and Applications.

Writing a Musical Interest Form [pdf, 229k]
State Content Standards [pdfs, 500k: Grade 3, Grade 4, Grade 5, Grade 6, Grade 7, and Grade 8

Theatre Arts education provides a balance in the curriculum that is particularly important for the development of tomorrow’s leaders.  This program will engage and excite each and every student, leaving all students enriched and enlightened.

Bring the joy of musical theatre to your classroom!