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  • 1.  Musical Theatre Course Suggestions

    Posted 02-12-2017 17:12
    I am teaching a musical theatre course for the first time next year. We will have a range of students- some that have been doing musical theatre their entire lives and some that will do it for the first time! 

    I know second semester we will do some project based learning and do a Jr or School Edition Musical. I would like to do a showcase the other semester. 

    What are some things you all do in your classes that is really successful? Any books that are very helpful in planning? 

    I want to cover quite a few bases- history, styles, technique. 

    Any suggestions are welcome! 

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    Brooke Jackson
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  • 2.  RE: Musical Theatre Course Suggestions

    Posted 02-13-2017 03:20
    I teach a Musical Theatre class which takes the first half delving into the history and evolution of the form and then the second with students writing and performing their own "3 Song Musical" (to existing songs). I have a ton of books I've used, but these are some of my favorites:

    "Our Musicals, Ourselves: A Social History of the American Musical Theatre" by John Bush Jones
    "Acting in Musical Theatre" Joe Deer and Rocco Dal Vera
    Two by Ethan Mordden "Coming Up Roses" (50's) and "Open A New Window" (60's)
    "Strike Up the Band: A New History of Musical Theatre" by Scott Miller

    I have plenty more if you're interested. 

    Tom Schulz
    High School Theatre

    I am currently reading "Heaven Lake" by John Dalton.




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  • 3.  RE: Musical Theatre Course Suggestions

    Posted 02-13-2017 03:37
    When I taught one back in VA we would spend a week or two on a section of musical theatre history and so a short scene and/or song selection and then perform them in class.

    Melodrama - we started here and did the standard "I'm tied to train tracks - help me!" type of scene

    Gilbert & Sullivan - we did the scene where Frederick meets the maidens on the beach and sang part of Modern Major General

    Vaudeville - we did a short sketch and sang I Like the Likes of You

    Follies -  staged a number with girls wearing things on their head and parading around while guys danced elegantly with canes

    We may have done Burlesque (focusing more on the "cutsey" aspect of it then the sketchy part :)

    We then moved into more solo focused work - but could have easily continued with other genres {Rodgers/Hammerstein, Sondheim, Rock Opera, Etc.] - I think the key was using the history as the launching point and then learning the style in a performance process (which also made it easier to grade since they had to master the style of each thing).  Plus it was just fun.

    Musicals101.com is ridiculously helpful and there are decent resources online to find a lot of the older songs/scenes/sketches

    hope that helps!




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    Brandon Becker
    Denver CO
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    Original Message


  • 4.  RE: Musical Theatre Course Suggestions

    Posted 02-13-2017 09:39
    I teach a musical theatre course. For the first semester, we spend each week with different eras of musical theatre and they perform each week from that era.  At the end of the semester, we put together a musical theatre cabaret performing the best of these weekly performances with a few group numbers added in.  It works well!!

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    Vicki Kirkley
    Director of Theatre
    McKinney Boyd High School
    McKinney, Texas
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    Original Message


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