BaileyKidsMusicals.com
Kid Tested and Parent Approved
  • Home
  • Betsy's Blog on Children's Theater |
  • Children's Musicals
  • Mini Classroom Musicals
  • Songs from Musicals
  • Featured Songs from Shows
  • Tips for Presenting Children's Musicals
  • Putting on a Show
  • Folktales and Superheroes
  • What People Are Saying...
  • Video from Musicals
    • Never Cry Wolf 2007 Video
    • A Successor to the Throne Provost 2013 Video
    • Parizade's Quest 2015 Video
    • Momotaro Summer Camp Video 2015
  • Photos from Productions
    • Photos from A Successor to the Throne 2006
    • Photos from Successor to the Throne 2013
    • Photos from Never Cry Wolf 2007
    • Photos of Never Cry Wolf 2014
    • Photos of Never Cry Wolf 2019 Summer Camp
    • Photos from Stone Soup 2012
    • Photos from Chicken Licken Summer 2014
    • Photos from Parizade's Quest 2015
    • Photos from The Ants and the Grasshopper 2014
    • Photos The Adventures of Dick Whittington 2016
    • Photos from Momotaro 2017
    • Photos from Chicken Licken Camp 2021
  • About Me
  • Contact Info
  • Never Cry Wolf Hair Style Ideas and Tutorials
  • Children's Picture Books
  • Christmas Nativity Script (short)

Lessons from Disappointments

1/29/2021

2 Comments

 
I was fortunate to grow up in a musical family with a very creative mother.  She could make things happen, not just for her own children, but for anyone else who happened to be standing around.  Because of her wonderful talents, she could take regular folks and make them feel like they could do anything --- sing, dance, paint scenery, sew costumes, write scripts, and so forth. In short, my mother was great at helping people gain confidence in themselves.  And she was right there making them look good ---- usually from the PIANO BENCH.  For example, she was always producing SHOWS --- for school groups, church groups, community groups, the neighborhood kids, her piano and voice students, as well as her own family.  People loved her and were drawn to her, not just because of her marvelous talents, but because she genuinely LOVED PEOPLE. 
PictureCarolyn Lee with 5 of her 6 kids at Christmas in Ohio
Her immense talents could pose trouble for her children, though.  Many times, we were passed over for special opportunities.  Then, the "people in charge" felt that they had to explain. "Well, obviously your daughter (or son) was the most talented or qualified for this, but she will always have opportunities in her life.  That's why we chose ________ instead."  Because our family moved around the country a lot, the "people in charge" never saw that these "special opportunities" didn't really materialize for us.

I always wondered why the "people in charge" felt compelled to say things like that.  Why didn't they just post the cast list?  Why come to us to try to justify themselves in making their choice?  It didn't make any of us feel better ---- quite the reverse. 

Even in college, I ran into "people in charge" who acted this same way.  For instance, I had auditioned for and been chosen to go on European tour as a singer with the jazz band.  Then just before we were to leave, the "person in charge" came to me and said, "You are just too pretty and too good a singer for us.  We have decided that you can't go after all."   (I suppose that had that happened in more recent times, I would have been encouraged to bring up sexual harassment charges against him.  But, we didn't know about things like that back then. I didn't even think I was all that pretty!)

Thank goodness, I was raised by a mother who instilled in us that we can grow from our disappointments --- even if we must use our God-given talents along different avenues.  I may never know why I was passed over for so many desirable special opportunities in my life, but, I know enough about disappointments that I can go on despite them.



2 Comments

Planning Real Shows in a Virtual World

1/25/2021

0 Comments

 
PictureWho would want to see a play without seeing the kids' cute faces?
It is an acknowledged fact that technology has been changing exponentially year to year.  Well, back when when cassette tape recorders were new and  PA  systems were too expensive for wide usage, our little group of performers had to come up with some creative solutions to mount a little play.  

We were to perform before an audience of 500+ excited teenagers at a Youth Conference.  The only microphone was at the speaker's podium.  While our little play could be performed by just a few actors and it did have relatively few lines, we had to rely on broad gestures and larger than life facial expressions for the physical comedy.  We could not huddle together taking turns at one stationary microphone hidden behind a large wooden podium!!!!!!  

So, we pre-recorded the entire audio of our play --- lines and singing as well as musical underscoring.   We really had to practice to judge the timing since we had to guess the dimensions of our stage and the reactions of the audience in advance of getting to the venue.  And if we actually spoke or sang along, we couldn't hear well enough to stay in sync with the tracks.  So, we had to mouth the words.  During the performance we played the recording by setting the cassette tape player right at the podium mic.  (Wow!  That was advanced technology!)

The point is, that the pre-recording allowed us to do our play in that large hall with the noisy, boisterous audience and still pull off a successful performance.

I am wondering if pre-recording the vocals might be one way I could do my Theater Camp this summer.  If I bring in the children to record their vocals by family groups (pods), then when we perform, could we mouth the words and take off the masks?  If singing is the "mass spreader" of coronavirus, then just mouthing the words with no singing should not cause problems, right?

​I just cannot imagine doing a children's musical without seeing the kids cute faces.  It is just too important.  Why would parents put their kids in a performance experience if the kids can't get the whole experience?

0 Comments

Picture Book with No Words

1/17/2021

0 Comments

 
PictureCarolyn (age 3) with friend Brian
My daughter called me the other day and announced that she had an idea for my next Picture Book.  She reminded me of a story I used to tell about her, but she said that it should be a story without words.  When I started to protest, she assured me that this particular story would work very well with just pictures, and no words.  She then told me her version of the story scene by scene.  The trouble was that what she remembered and what I remembered were two very different stories. 

(She was, after all, only three when it took place.)

Even so, what she said certainly gave me a lot to think about.  So, last week I tried getting some sketches down on paper.  Doing just drawings with enough energy and expression is a tall order for me.  I feel like I am still honing my skills and have no particular style yet.  I have always leaned on the text to make the story clear.  Could my drawings really be good enough to carry the storyline?

Picture
Well, I decided to tell my version of the story in any case.  However, she did give me a lot of great ideas on how to vary the sight lines and vantage points. So, I will try to use some of those, for variety.  In a way, telling a story just from the pictures leaves a lot of room for on-the-spot embellishment.  Each "reading" could end up quite different from the original story, until the last page anyway. Until that last page, no one could know what the story is actually about.  And even then, would anybody believe it?

Points to ponder...

0 Comments

Let's Just Build a Stage

1/10/2021

0 Comments

 
Picture

“Well, then, let’s build a stage!  We have the technology and we can get the budget and the manpower!” 

This statement came from one very helpful and skilled father.
 
​
​Our little group of parents and friends wanted to do a show allowing our kids to have a fun summer activity.   We were given permission to do it at the Church building as a two-week Summer Camp.  That was not the problem.  The problem was that our Church building had no stage.
 
In my mind, I concluded that this was our best chance to make our show a success.  If we were to put our children through so much effort learning a show, we had better make it possible for the audience to see it.  There really is nothing worse than going to your child's or grandchild’s production only to find that the room is too crowded and you can’t see over the heads of the people in front of you!
 
So, this Dad called in his troops and built us a stage.  Meanwhile, the other Moms and I rehearsed with the 45 children ages 4 to 14, taught them lines and singing, choreographed their dances, made their costumes, and even supervised educational and recess activities for them.   We were all having a fun and exciting time, until...
 
My worst fear became apparent!  The plywood stage became a drum when the children walked on it.  It only amplified the sound of the kids' footfalls.  And I didn’t dare let them dance on it for fear of them falling off!
 
Obviously, the solution through the ages has been --- elevate the performers on a raised stage OR --- ELEVATE THE AUDIENCE!  That was it!  We decided to use the plywood platforms to raise the audience in graduated seating sections.  The children stayed safe and danced their hearts out all over the gym floor.
 
The Children’s Musical was a great success and the audience was thrilled to be able to see and hear it all!

Picture
"A Successor to the Throne" 2006 Summer Camp in Bel Air, Maryland
0 Comments

Do They Perform in English?

1/9/2021

0 Comments

 
Years ago now, I was asked to write a few song songs to accompany a project for students learning English as a Second Language.  One of the tools the proprietor used is Reader's Theater renditions of famous tales, in English, of course.  The company out of Taiwan hired talented artists as illustrators and English professors to re-write the stories and scripts using very simple phrases and vocabulary.  These books are absolutely beautifully done. 

Back then, I was shown 25 stories and was asked to provide engaging songs for them.  Not feeling very secure in the assignment, I told him that I would choose five stories and write 2 songs for each of them.  That way, he could see if they would add to the experience or be too much.  He agreed, and I set out to write some simple songs at a First Grader's level and vocabulary.  (He did not specify that i had to keep the music simple.)

The stories I chose were "The Musicians of Bremen," "The City Mouse and the Country Mouse," "The Three Billy Goats Gruff," "Dick Whittington's Cat," and "Chicken Licken."  

Well, I liked the songs and wanted to write my own shows using them.  Permission was granted, so I proceeded to create some 10-15 minute mini-musicals for in-class presentations and some full scale 30-45 minute shows for larger casts. on the main stage.
Picture
School Chorus production incorporating "The Musicians of Bremen"
Since then (2012), I have had no feedback that these songs have been used or even if they were useful in Asia, but they have been well enjoyed in musicals here in America.

Just today, I learned that two of my mini-musicals were bought by someone in China.  So, that begs the question, "Will these little shows be performed in English?"  My heart wants to think that somewhere in China a school group is learning English as a second language and the teacher wants to do a more full-scale show than just an in-class Reader's Theater.  I hope this is the case and I wish them well as they perform "The Tale of the Musicians of Bremen" and "The Tale of the City Mouse and the Country Mouse."
Picture
Summer Camp cast forming a circle to dance "A Country Mouse."
The "Brementown Musicians" has a bit of German flair accompanying the obnoxious sounds of the animals.  "A Country Mouse" is done with some good old American Hoedown flavor.
0 Comments

    Author

    My name is Betsy Bailey.  I have sung, written and taught music all of my life.  I enjoy writing and directing Children's Theater shows.  This blog will be directed to topics on creating the magic of Children's Theater.  I would love to hear your comments!

    Archives

    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    July 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    January 2017
    October 2016
    September 2016
    July 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013

    Categories

    All
    Acting Games
    Aesop Fables
    Age Appropriate Material
    Auditions
    Benefits Of Children's Theater
    Broadway And Movie Songs
    Character Values
    Chicken Licken
    Children's Chorus
    Children's Theater
    Choreography
    Christmas Nativity Pageant
    Common Core Objectives
    Costumes
    Costuming
    Dick Whittington And His Cat
    Disney Magic
    Drama Club
    Elementary School Music
    Elementary School Stages
    Family Fun
    Flexible Casting
    Folk Songs
    Funny Stories
    Getting Inspiration
    Improvisation
    Inspired Direction
    Japanese Folktale
    Lessons Plans
    Matching Pitches
    Mini Musicals
    Mini-Musicals
    Momotaro
    Momotaro A Tale Of Bravery
    Old English Pantomime
    Parizade's Quest
    Performance
    Resourcefulness
    Sets And Props
    Songwriting
    Stone Soup
    Storybooks
    Summer Theater Camp
    Tales Of The Arabian Nights
    Teaching Aids
    Teaching Singing
    The Boy Who Cried Wolf
    The Country Mouse And The City Mouse
    The Empty Pot
    The Musicians Of Bremen
    Writing And Directing Children's Musicals

    RSS Feed

Copyright: Bailey Kids Musicals, 2015