I work at a children's theatre, and I'm looking for some musicals along similar to "You're a Good Man Charlie Brown" and "Snoopy" in that they are not complex in terms of plot or subject matter (though they could be) and would be family friendly.
Annie, The Sound of Music and The Wizard of OZ are things we have recently done.
I know it's one of those shows that theatre people love to hate, but I find SEUSSICAL incredibly enjoyable.
When my company did it, the kids adored it because it brought many beloved literary characters to life, but the adults loved it just as much because the score is inspired by recognizable genres and artists (Aretha Franklin and the Beach Boys for example).
There are also many children's versions of shows. I work with a kids group and we have recently done Cats, The Little Mermaid, Hairspray and Little Shop.
Believe it or not, they did Seussical and The Little Mermaid last year too :)
Hairspray a few years ago too :)
I believe there is a children's version of GREASE that a group in my community put on a few years back. That could be fun. I heard that it takes out all the sex and drug references, no smoking, no swearing, etc...... I believe it is called "GREASE: SQUEAKY CLEAN" or something like that.
Sorry, Double Post Updated On: 2/10/13 at 01:27 PM
Joseph & The ATDC.
About 12 yrs ago when my daughter was elementary school a saw a musical version of "The Emperor's New Clothes", put on by 4th and 5th graders that was very fun.
Disney has a bunch of other titles "Aladdin Jr" comes to mind.
How diverse is your group? I'd suggest "Once On This Island". (There is a junior version.)
There are some lovely versions of "Alice in Wonderland" out there.
I think the clean Grease could be fun (did that at camp when I was a kid).
Stand-by Joined: 2/9/13
Do you know the show How To Eat Like A Child by Delia Ephron. Seussical could be a good idea. Or Peter Pan. MTI has a collection of "Broadway JR" shows that are really great. They have Into the Woods JR., Once on This Island JR., Fiddler on the Roof JR, The Music Man JR and a lot of other great shows too. You should definitely check them out. Hope this helps.
Dreaming: my co-director and I were thinking about doing a version of Alice in Wonderland--which ones do you think are good?
How old are the kids, Gink? There's the Disney Jr. version which isn't half bad. There is also a Prince Street Player's version that's neat for a non-Disney version.
How about A YEAR WITH FROG AND TOAD.
Cast albums are NOT "soundtracks."
Live theatre does not use a "soundtrack." If it did, it wouldn't be live theatre!
I host a weekly one-hour radio program featuring cast album selections as well as songs by cabaret, jazz and theatre artists. The program, FRONT ROW CENTRE is heard Sundays 9 to 10 am and also Saturdays from 8 to 9 am (eastern times) on www.proudfm.com
Featured Actor Joined: 6/4/10
I was involved with a children's theatre group years ago that performed The Magic Pebble, written by Nancy Kierspe Carson. It was never a Broadway or off-Broadway show, but the music in it's pretty simple and catchy, the plot is fun, and the cast can be as large or as small as desired.
It has nothing to do with Sylvester and the Magic Pebble. It's about a group of children who find... a magic pebble. It grants wishes, but gets smaller with each wish. Through a combination of childish and accidental wishes, the children end up journeying onto a pirate ship, into Ancient Egypt (where they encounter King Tut), and back to their hometown. They keep picking up historical figures on their way in a sort of anonymous-Bill-and-Ted's-Excellent-Adventure style, but they need to figure out how to bring them back to their own times as the pebble gets smaller and smaller.
I highly recommend it for children's theatre groups. It was my first show ever, I can still remember the music today, and it was ridiculously fun to be a part of. Simple plot, simple music, lots of possibilities.
Stand-by Joined: 1/8/12
There's a great version of Alice in Wonderland..can have a lot of kids in it. Also, check out the Flat Stanley musical. Pretty good songs for kids.
The last children's theater production I saw did "Children of Eden" about 70 kids from 8-18. The leads were all hs students.
Marlo Thomas' Free to Be You and Me works great as a kids musical.
I directed it at Stagedoor Manor and it was a big hit.
I think it was in book form but easily adapts to a show.
Videos