The Middle School Musical
Victor V. Bobetsky

Summer vacation has ended; it is time to prepare for the new school year. After selecting repertoire for the December holiday concert, the middle school choral director begins to plan for the spring semester. When classes resume after New Year's, it is always a challenge to maintain the high level of enthusiasm and motivation that made the holiday concert so successful. A new and exciting musical performing experience could protect you and your students from the “winter slump.” Working with students and colleagues to produce a musical can result in an exciting, interdisciplinary unit of study for the spring semester.

Perhaps you have often thought of producing a musical with your middle school students but have decided not to for one or more of the following reasons:

• Your primary responsibility is the choral program and there is not enough time in your schedule to simultaneously conduct choral rehearsals and prepare a musical.
• The voices of your middle school students may not yet be capable of singing a typical solo role in a musical.
• Some of your best singers may not have the necessary acting ability or experience to portray the major roles.

Consider meeting with your colleagues in art and drama (or English, if there is no drama instructor) and see whether you can all collaborate on selecting a musical and on designing an interdisciplinary unit of study based on the musical and related activities. The selected musical should have elements which the art and drama teachers can connect to their curriculum and goals. For example, designing scenery and costumes for South Pacific or The King and I could reinforce the study of Asian art and architecture. Designing scenery and costumes for Little Shop of Horrors could reinforce the study of plants and nature. Work with the drama teacher to reduce the length of and edit the libretto without losing the meaning and flow of the plot. Agree on a procedure for auditioning or assigning students to different roles and parts. Then, arrange the solos and choral numbers to suit your chorus members’ vocal strengths and capabilities. Create vocal parts which are rhythmically and melodically interesting as well as doable. Maintain some solo singing, especially to begin numbers that are traditionally sung by one character. As the number progresses, either have the chorus enter to support the soloist or have the chorus take over entirely and continue the song. Position the chorus either in scattered formation on stage, along the sides of the stage, in the pit or in any combination of these which works for your performance location.

In small school districts where the middle and high school may be combined, consider presenting a musical utilizing both middle and high school students. All of the previous suggestions for arranging the choral numbers would still apply. However, additional choral parts could be added to take advantage of the high school singers’ capabilities. Some of the solo selections could probably be performed in their entirety by selected high school students. [Editor’s note: If you plan to revise copyrighted material, please adhere to the rules. See The United States Copyright Law, A Guide for Music Educators, available on line at: www.menc.org/ information/ copyright/ copyr.html]

Use the bulk of the spring semester to teach the songs to your chorus. Make the study of the musical the focus of your spring curriculum. Analyze the structure of the musical, the characterization and the meaning of the plot. Identify the musical and technical challenges present in each of the songs and structure your rehearsals so that students can identify and master these challenges.

Have your students do research and learn about the lives and careers of the composer and lyricist. Read and discuss the original reviews of the musical. Study the story of the musical and help students make connections to history, important events, and attitudes of the time when the show was written.

Have chorus members take turns speaking the different roles. Hold readings of individual scenes leading into the choral and/or solo selections you are rehearsing. These activities can give your chorus members valuable practice in dramatic reading. Make sure, as the semester progresses, that all students have an opportunity to read each of the roles. You will find that these activities will increase students’ understanding of, interest in and involvement with the musical.

Recruit a dance teacher who would be willing to help choreograph certain selections. If none is available, ask a talented high school student or parent to consider lending their expertise to the production. Also, don’t be afraid to tap into the creative potential of your own students; there may be some middle school students who can create original choreography.

Publicize the performance of the musical throughout the school and community. Interested chorus members can work with students from the journalism club on this project. Make certain that all who contributed to the production are acknowledged in the printed program. Then, prepare to enjoy the excitement of opening night!

You have now successfully arranged, edited and produced a musical for your middle school. Your choral students, solo singers, actors and artists will have achieved a high level of confidence in their abilities and talents. The unit of study will have included learning experiences in singing, acting, research, art, history, dramatic reading, staging and performance. You and your colleagues will have benefited from this opportunity to work together on a creative project. Students and faculty will have wonderful memories of an exciting spring semester!

Dr. Victor V. Bobetsky, a former middle school music teacher in the New York City Schools, has served as a school district music supervisor/administrator in Columbus, Ohio, West Hartford, Connecticut and East Meadow, New York. He is Director of the Teacher Education Program in Music at Hunter College of the City University of New York.