<![CDATA[BaileyKidsMusicals.com - Betsy\'s Blog on Children\'s Theater]]>

<![CDATA[BaileyKidsMusicals.com - Betsy\'s Blog on Children\'s Theater]]>Tue, 06 Oct 2026 16:12:45 -0600Weebly<![CDATA[Going Down a Rabbit Hole]]>Thu, 01 Oct 2026 17:08:24 GMThttps://www.baileykidsmusicals.com/betsys-blog-on-childrens-theater/going-down-a-rabbit-holeProjects come and go all the time. Some are thrust upon me. Others are of my own making. And in between, housekeeping needs doing. Yeah, I'm talking cleaning up my computer organization.

My file and record keeping is very haphazard. I pity my children who may have to come in at some point and try to make sense of it all.

So, I am trying to do some rearranging and organizing. Especially of my Children's Musical scripts and songs. The first step seems to be at least collecting all the related parts and dumping them into tabs or windows or folders that make sense. Then I'll need to come up with NAME LABELS that describe what is in each tab/window/folder. Why is that so hard anyway?

Well, first of all, it requires me to carefully look through every file on my computer. Even in folders that I have labeled, I find that there is a lot of redundancy. Okay, let's just call it what it is --- JUNK. Whenever I write a show or create a new song, there are bound to be revisions. But if I immediately toss out the various versions and revisions, I may find that the original ideas were better. I don't want to shoot myself in the foot...

Along the way, I find little gems that I may be able to repurpose. Some of these pieces of music, mostly incidentals or dances, I have not thought about in years, such as "Alice's Dance" from "The Adventures of Dick Whittington."

And then I get sucked down the rabbit hole. I look at more music and shows and pictures and think of the young actors that were in these shows and sang those songs and danced those dances.

Lily as "Alice"

Most of these memories are very pleasant. But then I start thinking about the young actors and what they must be doing now.

Those kids may be in college by now, or on missions. Maybe they are married and starting their own families.

Well, I better climb out of the rabbit hole now before I get all depressed about how old I am. I just hope those young actors can look back fondly on our good times together like I do.

]]><![CDATA[Fun at Tuacahn]]>Fri, 25 Sep 2026 23:17:20 GMThttps://www.baileykidsmusicals.com/betsys-blog-on-childrens-theater/fun-at-tuacahnFor the past three nights, I got to see shows at Tuacahn Amphitheater in St. George. I have to say that the dancing and costumes were the brightest parts of the shows. Last night in particular, Disney and Pixar's "Finding Nemo" had some exceptional costumes and huge puppets.

My favorite puppets were the huge sea turtle Crush and his little son Squirt. The puppets were operated by puppeteers who made the puppets move and sang for them. So fun!

Other sea creatures were dancers in bright, colorful, imaginative costumes. Some were instantly recognizable. Others took some creative thinking to figure out what they were. But they were beautiful.

It always amazes me how programs can grow. I remember going to see a show at Tuacahn years ago when it was still pretty new. As I recall, our tickets were on cement steps back then. Now the amphitheater has very comfortable seats. My friends and I went early enough to the theater to walk around and look at a lot of the storage warehouses, studio and rehearsal spaces, restaurants, gift shop, apartment buildings, and even some corral spaces for animals that are now part of the Tuacahn complex.

The red rocks of the canyon are strikingly majestic. We were lucky that we went on evenings that were the perfect temperature. We stayed at a B'n'B very near the theater, so even though the shows ran late, we only had a 10 minute drive to get back "home." We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.

We weren't allowed to take pictures during the show, so this is the only image I got. It is amazing what a healthy budget, creative designers, and masterful builders can make for a show. Even though I never have infinite budgets for my Musicals, I like to think that they are a good starting place to help kids catch the performance bug. Besides, seeing shows like this gives me inspiration!

]]><![CDATA[Physically Animating Cartoon Characters]]>Wed, 16 Sep 2026 01:39:13 GMThttps://www.baileykidsmusicals.com/betsys-blog-on-childrens-theater/physically-animating-cartoon-characters

My little girls loved to watch Disney movies when they were very young. They loved to dress up in their "spin around dresses and click shoes" to dance to the wonderful music from those Disney shows. When they were older, I determined to put them into ballet and tap classes. The older daughter had the perfect shape for a dancer -- long legs and and thin torso. She could easily do all of the dance steps and keep up in the class. I couldn't wait for the next daughter to get old enough to start dance classes.

Daughter #2 was perfectly suited physically for doing the dance moves, but in class, she just did not follow very well. It turns out that her 4-year-old self thought she was doing everything as directed, but all we saw from the outside was a little girl standing there doing nothing, or coming in with actions and moves that were out of sync with the music and the rest of the class. We thought that she had no sense of rhythm and was uncoordinated or something.

Little did we know that her little brain was working overtime. She was deep in her own world in her mind doing the most marvelous steps. I worried so much that she was not ready, or worse, had no talent, that I elected to take her out of dance classes until she showed some promise. We thought dance would just not be her "thing."

Years later, that daughter, developed many talents in singing, art, and drama, but especially in dance. She loved to choreograph. This is where her ability to imagine in her mind the movements of large numbers of people on the stage came in handy. She even decided to make human performance and dance her major in college.

One of the most interesting things she did during her college years was to work a season at Disney World "animating" or bringing the Disney cartoon characters to life. Because of her ability to choreograph and act, she was great at doing movements that were unique to the various characters she portrayed. Each cast member could portray several characters according to their height range and how they fit the costumes. They also had to be able to master signing the autographs of the characters they portrayed. This was a delightful adventure for her.

Bluebirds Trio from "Chicken Licken"

ANIMATING THROUGH MOVEMENT - On stage, actors need to be able to use their bodies to "animate," or take the identity and use appropriate movements for the characters they portray.

The Chicken Family from "Chicken Licken"

During dance warm-ups, a fun activity is to have the children do movements representing ANIMALS or other FANTASY CREATURES. Have the accompanist play music that sets the mood for different movement such as "slow, lumbering" music for large cumbersome animals, "bouncy" music for monkeys, "slithering" music for snakes, "gliding" music for birds, "galloping" music for horses or unicorns, etc.

Geese Family from "Chicken Licken"

Keep these snippets of music very short and changing after 8 bars or so. Help the children use their entire bodies to give shape and movement to the creatures. Let them make characteristic creature sounds, as well. Remember to also feature FANTASY CHARACTERS, too, such as Robots, or Monsters, or Unicorns, or Fairies.

Keep it fun and SHORT!

The Duck Family has a very animated dance in "The Tale of Chicken Licken."

They sing and do morning exercises to "Off to the Races." They exercise to be strong and ready to always beat the Goose Family down to the lake to look for worms.

]]><![CDATA[Mini-Musicals Created On the Fly]]>Thu, 03 Sep 2026 13:26:22 GMThttps://www.baileykidsmusicals.com/betsys-blog-on-childrens-theater/mini-musicals-created-on-the-fly"Stone Soup," "The Ants and the Grasshopper," and "The Musicians of Bremen" are all shows that have been recently purchased from my catalogue. That makes me happy for two reasons. 1. It's so nice to learn that these cute little shows will be produced somewhere and 2. I am grateful for honest people who actually buy the entire show packages (not just bits and pieces).

These three small shows were developed for Drama Club presentations. In each case, I was asked to teach classes for a few weeks after school. These students met with me once a week for 8 weeks. I had planned to just teach skills and do some skits. But no, the students demanded that they have their own shows to perform for their families.

At this school, I had been doing Main Stage Children's Musicals every Spring. Even the first and second graders knew about these shows, and had high expectations. (The school only made the Main Stage productions available for 5th and 6th graders.) So, I practically had to write these mini shows on the fly.

However, I enjoy writing for known quantities. As I got to know the abilities of these particular kids, I was inspired to write shows just for them. "The Ants and the Grasshopper" came about because the class had seven little first grade girls and one big second grade boy. Fortunately that boy could sing and move well. It only made sense to write a show for little "ants" and a big "grasshopper."

"The Musicians of Bremen" came about because the 3rd-4th grade Drama Club class only had a ten students. They needed a flexible show they could learn quickly and support each other. They all sang and danced the songs, took turns being Narrators, and even played kazoos.

This show would be easy for a music class to do with the ensemble parts sung by the other students.

"Stone Soup" has had many iterations depending on how many kids were enrolled. The first group was very young, so the songs, dances, and lines were very simple. Over the years it has been pretty popular, though. I personally have mounted this show many times and have modified the lines, songs and dances to fit larger casts.

Here are songs from each show to enjoy.

]]><![CDATA[Characters with Defined Characteristics]]>Fri, 14 Aug 2026 13:14:46 GMThttps://www.baileykidsmusicals.com/betsys-blog-on-childrens-theater/characters-with-defined-characteristicsLately I have done a lot of busy work at the computer. Work that doesn't take a lot of intense brain power. So, for companionship, I have been listening to a lot of pod casts. One was a biography of a famous Broadway composer/lyricist named Jerry Herman. He is famous for writing some big shows like "Hello Dolly" and "Mame."

Jerry Herman is a name I remembered from when I saw the movie version of "Hello Dolly" when I was a teenager. My mother bought the song folio and had me learn many of the songs to sing on shows around town. Wonderful music!

But something about that movie didn't work for me. I loved the songs and dances, but I found that seeing a young Dolly going after an old Horace Vandergelder was off-putting. Still, I had heard that the original Dolly Levi on Broadway was an actress named Carol Channing. I knew her from another movie musical I loved, "Thoroughly Modern Millie." The difference I guessed was that Carol Channing was older and you could tell that she loved everyone.

Then, when I was in college, I was in a stage version of "Hello Dolly." The actress who played Dolly in our cast was more like a Carol Channing. She just exuded LOVE. That is the key to performing that character. She just has to love everyone and cause people to love her back. That was crucial in making the show work.

Children's Theater productions, especially those for very young inexperienced actors, cannot depend solely on the developing talents and abilities of the cast members. The material needs to be good enough to read well for audiences whether or not the actors have the needed chops. Of course, every director hopes that the right talents show up to be able to cast the show in the best possible light. But, usually, as a director, you have to hope the material will "carry" the performance.

That's why I discourage Elementary School directors from using some of the very famous Broadway Junior shows. Those shows were written for adult actors who already have developed talents and abilities that can sing the songs, dance the dances, and actually act the parts believably.

Shows that work better for young actors are those written expressly for young actors. The songs are in ranges that work for young voices. The dance sections don't go on and on and on, but are short and work for kids with limited dance training.

The characters and their lines are not so complicated and nuanced that young children cannot possibly be believable in those roles. AND there can never be a full out romantic LOVE STORY!

Stick with shows that have characters that can be played by children, for children, and also enjoyed by parents and grandparents.

Here's a song from "The Tale of Chicken Licken" sung by the mother Goose to her daughter and two little sons. Enjoy!

]]><![CDATA[The Target Audience]]>Thu, 06 Aug 2026 13:41:25 GMThttps://www.baileykidsmusicals.com/betsys-blog-on-childrens-theater/the-target-audienceMany of you are in the same position I am. You are growing older, well, not just older, growing OLD. Not only am I an empty nester and grandmother, this Fall I will become a great grandmother. Now, if that isn't cause for pause, I don't know what is.

Every year since 2016, I have endeavored to write up one of our "famous" family stories in picture book form. In some respects to bypass having to come up with individual Christmas gifts for my 30 grandchildren, but more for the idea of recording our funny family stories for posterity.

The first picture book story was "Is This Cowboy Food?" It was about our middle son who (when he was 3) would always approach meals (and life) with a scowl. He is now a father of four with the oldest daughter already a teenager. The other stories have been about our other children, most of whom are old enough to have kids in High School and College now.

When I took some workshop classes about how to write good children's books, they always said to write for your target audience. They also said to gage your story about a character who is basically the same age as your target audience. Well, this has worked out pretty well for me, since the stories I have chosen have been about my own children when they were little. Their kids were the target audience and they have thought it was fun to learn about their parents (or aunts and uncles) as kids.

Well, 13 picture books later, dredging up good stories about my grown-up children is getting harder for me now. So, for Christmas this year, I have decided to write up a story told to me by my youngest daughter about her kids. By extension, they are my kids, too, because they lived with me during the time of this story's setting. That makes it more familiar for me. (Now, if I was only a better artist...)

Anyway, writing for a TARGET AUDIENCE works the same for Children's Theater shows. If the audience (and the cast members) are ages 5-12, you'd better have matching appropriate material for that age group. The story and characters should be engaging enough to be interesting for elementary school-age children. The songs should be in ranges that fit young children's voices. Dances, costumes, props, sets, and everything having to do with the show should fit what kids these ages can work with.

Thank goodness families go on and on forever.

Perhaps, I will always have a ready TARGET AUDIENCE for my family picture books and Children's Musicals.

"Stone Soup" was heavily influenced by experiences I had raising Matthew, our little cowboy.

Enjoy this Opener "Over Yonder" sung by the entire cast.

]]><![CDATA[Opportunities for Flexible Casting]]>Tue, 14 Jul 2026 00:47:50 GMThttps://www.baileykidsmusicals.com/betsys-blog-on-childrens-theater/opportunities-for-flexible-castingProbably the most intimidating part of writing a new show or mounting a production is choosing the CAST. Many of the children who sign up to do a Children's Theater Show (ages 5-12) have never been in a show before. They don't even know what they can do. When writing a show for kids to perform, the author must take that fact into account.

And as a director, you have to use your best intuition to look for talents that may not have surfaced yet. Sometimes, the casting choices are very obvious from the selection available. Other times, the talent pool that shows up may not provide the best options to satisfy all of the roles. So you do the best you can and hope things will work out. Creating or choosing a show that has FLEXIBLE CASTING is so important! That ensures there are built-in adaptations possible.

Bluebirds Trio

In Children's Theater, there are usually at least five girls who sign up for every boy who comes out for the play. And yet, I have noticed that a great majority of the stories feature a boy as the lead character. And most of the stories that the young girls like feature a princess who becomes a love interest to a youth who is out on a quest.

In reality though, the young boys HATE being cast in a "love" story. They prefer battle scenes and comic situations, while the girls love to dance and wear pretty costumes. So, when designing a new production, the author must keep these things in mind. If you want to attract boys to your cast, you better NOT do a "love" story. And if you want girls to be in the show, you better have a lot of dancing and colorful costumes.

Another problem that comes about in Children's Theater is that the kids like what they know. They are very distrusting of anything else. So they will get excited about titles of shows they have seen or heard of before. With the availability of so many movies that have been made into Children's Theater shows, kids assume that the stage play will be the same as the movie.

But a junior stage production cannot be like the animated movie. In a community production with a limited budget, characters cannot fly or swim, fight with real weapons on horseback through an avalanche, ride in a parade of dinosaurs, disappear in a puff of smoke or pixie dust, or many other magical effects that can only happen in animation or computer generated film making. And even if the show has the same songs, they usually have to be shortened and modified to fit the ranges of young children. (At least, they really should be!) So, kids tend to be disillusioned when they are cast in a production that they think they know, but then everything is very different.

Henny Penny, Chicken Licken, Chicks , and Cocky Locky

In my own writing, I have had the most success with stories that are adapted from famous sources (Aesop or 1001 Arabian Nights), or folktales that have been retold in many ways. Since these stories have been presented in so many different and existing iterations, one more version must seem perfectly acceptable. One possible exception was my telling of "The Tale of Chicken Licken." Some of the kids thought they were auditioning to do a stage play of the Disney animated version of "Chicken Little." At first disappointed, once they got acquainted with this new production, they were fine and really enjoyed themselves.

Looking to create or produce shows that have opportunities for FLEXIBLE CASTING is the KEY to your success. (This means that the lead characters could be played by either a male or a female.) There should be enough featured characters to make it seem that every role is equal and very important. Action, comedy, dancing, colorful costumes, and NO LOVE story are also very important. The songs should be short and in vocal ranges suitable for young voices. And, the entire production should stay under 60 minutes (preferably shorter depending on your budget and schedule) from start to finish.

]]><![CDATA[Reviews and Comments]]>Mon, 06 Jul 2026 01:55:05 GMThttps://www.baileykidsmusicals.com/betsys-blog-on-childrens-theater/reviews-and-commentsSeeing people weeks later and still getting thoughtful comments and reviews after a Summer Camp is unusual. However, I'll take it. Two comments in particular were very welcome indeed.

The first was from a man who was grandpa to one of the youngest kids. I have known and admired him for years because of what he did in his professional life. He was world-renown in the choral music arena. Now we are neighbors and friends. But he had never seen any of my Children's Theater Musicals before. We hadn't had time for a chat immediately after the show, so this was extra special since he made a concerted effort to speak to me much later.

This man told me that he was so impressed that I seemed to know exactly what to write for these little people. He loved the music as well as how the show was written. He said that I definitely had a special gift. What could I answer but thank him and say that I have had many years of experience. Still, that comment meant so much coming from such a well respected musician as he is.

The other comment came from another grandfather of several young actors in the camp. This time the children were cousins from two families. He thanked me profusely for offering such wonderful opportunities for his grandchildren. He had been to many shows over the years and has been impressed that they were all so charming and meaningful.

He was also so grateful that we live in a country where we have the freedoms to do good without any interference from the government or other forces.

Wow! What a sobering thought. How I take for granted the freedoms we enjoy!

He said how he appreciated having good, wholesome activities that stretch the children to do things they may not ordinarily do. He was happy that the children proved that they could be responsible, learn their parts, and work well with others in the show. Then he said that by offering my time and energies to helping the kids do shows of this calibre has undoubtedly made my "calling and election" sure. (That's Biblical language for being assured that after my death I will go straight to my eternal reward.)

Well, that is a beautiful thought --- true or not. Still, it is nice to be thought of so highly.

Enjoy one of the fun production numbers "I Love the City Life" 2-Part Children's Chorus from "The Country Mouse and the City Mouse."

]]><![CDATA[Songs That Get Stuck In Your Head]]>Fri, 26 Jun 2026 16:12:45 GMThttps://www.baileykidsmusicals.com/betsys-blog-on-childrens-theater/songs-that-get-stuck-in-your-head

Aesop, the Ancient Greek Storyteller

Seven notes in the western diatonic scale. Twelve notes in the chromatic scale. That's all. And yet so many songs are written using only those pitches to create melodies and harmonies. How can so few notes still manage to have an infinite variety of songs created from them? How can so many different songs be unique and memorable?

After doing my Summer Theater Camp last weekend I went around listening to comments our audience members made about the show. Many grandparents came to see their grandchildren perform. Most often I heard that they couldn't believe that the kids gave such a polished performance in just two weeks. They also said that they were amazed that they could understand the kids singing and delivering their lines. But even more than that, they were blown away by the quality of the music and how catchy and memorable the songs were.

The two little shows were "The Ants and the Grasshopper" and "The Country Mouse and the City Mouse," both fables by Aesop, the ancient Greek storyteller. Here's what Wikipedia says about this: "Aesop's Fables are a collection of hundreds of short, morality-driven tales featuring personified animals, plants, and forces of nature. Attributed to an ancient Greek storyteller believed to have lived between 620 and 564 BCE, they are foundational texts in Western literature and culture."

Foundational texts. I hope so. The lessons taught in these fables are so important such as making preparations for the future as in "The Ants and the Grasshopper." Or learning to appreciate what you've got as in the "The Country Mouse and the City Mouse."

As a composer, I am so humbled listening to such accolades. When writing a show I try to always remain open for bits of inspiration when they come. If that little bit of inspiration can be developed into a catchy, memorable song, well, I hardly feel that I can take the credit.

For example, in desperation I was looking for ideas for a song to sum up the point of the "Ants" show. I had just the weekend to write a little show for a school Drama Club. Somehow I remembered reading the quote by John Maxwell that said, "You can play now and pay later, or pay now and play later. Either way you'll have to pay." Almost instantly the song, "Pay Now and Play Later" was born.

Then, when I was struggling with needing an idea for a song for the City Mouse to sing to convince her Country Cousin of the delights of the city, I watched a segment of Rick Steves European Travels. He told of two sayings that the French say about living and eating well in Paris. "Le joire de vivre" and "Bien Manger." Those sayings were just what I needed to write the song "As the French Say."

But the best compliments of all are when the audience walks away singing my songs from the show. Apparently, those two songs were real hits with the audience. I wonder how long they will be stuck in their heads...

]]><![CDATA[Bad Rehearsal, Good Show]]>Sun, 21 Jun 2026 20:11:17 GMThttps://www.baileykidsmusicals.com/betsys-blog-on-childrens-theater/bad-rehearsal-good-showThe Dress Rehearsal for our Summer Theater Camp was pretty crazy. The worst of it was that after taking a lot of time to build the set and arrange the audio equipment before everyone came at 9:00 am, a great wind came up and blew over our already compromised set pieces so that they split apart. Then we had some technical difficulties with the audio. I experienced so much stress trying to keep little fingers from exploring the equipment and altering the settings. I had an exceedingly hard time keeping calm amid the storm of smoky winds, 90 degree+ heat, and too many curious little kids.

The Country Mouse and her Country Siblings

Fortunately, my middle son Matthew came to the rescue and helped me fix the sets, check all the equipment, and calm me down. Our two short shows that share some of the flats could be saved! "The Ants and the Grasshopper" and "The Country Mouse and the City Mouse."

The next morning started out very ominously. The skies were thick with black smoke clouds from the fires in the south county. The sun was orange as it tried to shine through the clouds. The winds were not so forceful as the day before, but they were still present. The helpers that said they would come at 8:00 am, did not come until ten minutes to 9:00 am to set up for the show.

The City Mouse and her City Neighbors

I rarely sleep the night before a show, and this night I was particularly nervous. Boy, did I miss my husband and grown up, talented children yesterday morning. In the past we'd get up at 6:30 am and start setting up the shade canopies and chairs for our audience. They would also help me set up the sets on stage and carefully arrange the audio equipment and microphones. Then I could feel able to set out all of the costumes and props and other things that needed to be ready before the kids came. Yesterday, I tried to set up what I could before anybody came to help me, but there was plenty I could NOT do without help. (I am definitely getting too old for this!)

Fortunately, people did come to help. And they did set up the shade canopies and chairs for the audience. Then some people helped me set up the set pieces on the stage. One of the dads even offered to stand behind the most vulnerable set to support it during the entire show! That was so chivalrous of him. He missed his child's performance for the greater good. Bless him!

Half of the Ant Line with the Grasshopper

Well, about 150 people came to see the show in my backyard. And it turned out pretty good. The biggest problem was when a couple of "ants" kept getting their antennae (little black pipe cleaners) on their headbands entangled. Once I had to go up on stage and untangle them, the next time they got disentangled by themselves.

Half of the Ant Line with the Queen Ant

The old adage that if you have a bad rehearsal, you are certain to have a good show actually came true. I was so proud of my young performers. They actually saved their "best" for the performance.

Now, maybe after a few days to wash, sort, and put away costumes and props, I might get some blessed sleep!

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