Betsy's Blog on Children's Theater | BaileyKidsMusicals.com - BaileyKidsMusicals.com

You Can Learn a Lot from the Smallest of the Small

3/18/2026

Teaching nuggets of wisdom from very short fables was Aesop's style. Some of the translations available are literally just a few sentences long, and yet they are packed with power. He used animals, even the very tiny ones, in his stories to criticize and poke fun at the ridiculous circumstances he saw people getting themselves into all around him. He hoped that his stories would not only entertain, but teach valuable lessons.

For my Summer Theater Camp production this year, I am combining two Aesop Fables into one show. The younger children will be performing "The Ants and the Grasshopper" and the older children will present "The Country Mouse and the City Mouse." Because Aesop's original few lines are so short, it leaves a lot of room to fill out the population and activities with dialogue and songs. Still, these stories by themselves are not very long, so I've combined them into one show with an overarching theme: "You Can Learn a Lot."

You Can Learn a Lot

‘Way back in ancient Grecian time
When old Aesop told his fables fine,
He used animals in natures’ world
To entertain with stories ‘til a lesson emerged.

Aesop would use his skill and wit
To scoff and scold and criticize a bit
A deeper meaning hid beneath the fun
A prudent moral taught and by offending no one.

Plenty of fools live up above the ground
And won’t take notice of or even look down,
But if you would take a tiny little peak
You just might find the wisdom that you seek.

You can learn a lot from the smallest of the small
From the mice and ants and other things that crawl.
You can learn a lot from the creatures you’ve forgot.
You can learn a lot!

The Magic of Having Great Funding

2/28/2026

Most elementary school Musicals I have been to were done on a shoe string. What little budget the school provided went to renting the show, a few important costumes, a couple of body mics, and building sets.

So when I go to a show at an elementary school that is able to rent an expensive show package, such as Disney's "Alice in Wonderland," complete with script, stage directions, prerecorded score, plus has enough budget left to cover delightful costumes for 100 kids, props, sets, and at least eight lavalier mics, that leaves me speechless. A school that also has two follow spots, a lot of ambient lighting effects, risers for the ensemble choir, stage lighting, professionally painted backdrops, and operable stage drapes is almost unbelievable.

My granddaughter's school mounted this production, that was generally really good. The decorations for the stage and around the hall were so cute, and quite expensive looking. For example, cute large flowers were made out of craft foam. They were much sturdier than construction paper and held up very well. They mirrored the "flower" characters' costumes, that were also made of craft foam. It is doubtful that the families of the cast members had to provide much at all beyond shoes and black "basics" of long-sleeved teeshirt and pants.

Then, there were the other costumes like the deck of cards, shrimp Sailors, characters at the Mad Hatter's Tea Party, Tweedle Dum and Tweedle Dee, Cheshire Cats, and so forth. Great care was taken to make these costumes look so great.

I just wonder where they got their funding for all of this. Nothing for this show looked cheap.

However, I have a bone to pick with the production. The music backgrounds were so busy and highly produced that we in the audience could barely follow the singing. It is always difficult to follow individual characters singing when ALL of the voices are in treble clef.

The songs were reworked and updated from the 1950's Disney animated feature. Since the child characters could not be expected to be anything like the animated characters of the movie, voiced by professional actors, most of the songs were changed to be upbeat ensemble numbers. A lot of the charm of the original songs was negated by the added words, different rhythms, and busy orchestrations. Too bad.

This was a beautifully rendered artistic production and delightful to look at. However, it was hard to follow because of the very loud music and the out of tune singing (yelling). Oh, how I wish that more could be done to train young actors how to sing well and in tune. That would go a long way to help an artistically appealing show become much better show!

P.S I have since found out from my daughter that for this school production, the parents of the cast members were required to give monetary support or volunteer service in order for their kids to be involved. A professional artist provided the lavishly painted backdrops. Some professional seamstresses designed and provided imaginative costumes. Many more parents helped on committees. Wow!

Structure and Contrast

10/15/2025

We moved to Maryland from California in October 1997, just in time for Halloween. At that time we had kids ages 2 to 18. I had told my husband that he needed to find me a house that did NOT need major renovations and had enough bedrooms for our 7 children. (We had done 3 major house renovations already!)

I couldn't imagine living through another renovation with toddlers and teenagers and WINTER. Our children had never been through a winter with actual ice and snow. Before, with our renovations in California, we lived and played outside year-round. But in Maryland, I knew we not only needed enough bedrooms, but indoor spaces to play during the long months of winter.

We were fortunate to find a former "model" home in a developing neighborhood. It had five bedrooms and a finished, but not fancy basement. That basement had off-white carpet, and white walls, AND was so antiseptic and cold-looking, that my younger kids would not go down there. It was the logical place for a playroom, but not inviting at all.

My quick fix was to hang a "storybook land" wallpaper mural on the wall, mount a little wooden pony swing from the ceiling, and put a colorful, climbing play set down there. After the space became "kid friendly" the little kids would go down and play there. Just having some structures and contrasting colors made such a difference!

Deshi sings "Magnificent Flower" from "A Successor to the Throne"

In almost every area of our lives, Structure and Contrast play an important part. We usually don't like clothes or environments that are bland. Some people like getting more daring with colors and forms than others, but nearly everybody admits that having some structure and contrasts in place makes life better.

It's the same in music, and in Children's Musicals. Even when all of the songs are good on their own, if they all have the same format, tempo, rhythms, instrumentation, and tonality, they can come off as too much of a good thing and may even be boring for an audience. Audiences like VARIETY and that means paying attention to STRUCTURES and CONTRASTS.

Cast of "The Country Mouse and the City Mouse"

Most every good show starts with an upbeat OPENER that introduces the setting, characters, or plot elements of the story. Then there is usually a SOLILOQUY early in the first act - a lyrical song where the audience gets to know the main character's inner thoughts and motivations. The show is then sprinkled with PRODUCTION NUMBERS that include some main characters and many or all ensemble players. Those songs are used to move the plot along. Throughout the storyline, there may also be contrasting songs that provide explanatory information or exist just for COMIC RELIEF. Then, summation comes with REPRISES of important message songs or a big FINALE.

Alec in "Never Cry Wolf"

Each of these songs will be in contrasting styles, time signatures, keys, instrumentations, solo or chorus singing, and so forth. Many shows may also have certain instrumental "colors" that provide cohesion --- such as exotic bells and harp sounds suggesting a Persian setting, or using the Pentatonic scale in a Japanese folk piece.

VARIETY is key and that comes with variations in STRUCTURE and CONTRAST.

Here are a few examples of SOLILOQUY from "A Successor to the Throne," "The Country Mouse and the City Mouse," and "Never Cry Wolf."

Creatively Mounting a Children's Musical

8/22/2025

Having fun learning choreography

In the theater world, we call the preparation, casting, rehearsing, and doing all things related to producing a musical play MOUNTING a production. Putting on a full-scale musical or even a scaled-back production involves many elements and takes time and energy.

So, how much time should I allow to do all it takes to MOUNT a production?

That will depend on a few things: Schedule, Budget, Helpers, and the Stage, well actually, the availability of rehearsal and performance spaces.

Stage – “It’s all about the stage” or lack thereof. In the theater world, this is a common mantra. Creating the illusion of the world in the story is literally a function of the stage and its limitations. Sometimes a show must be MOUNTED in a portion of a classroom with none of the conventional perks (lights, sound, curtains, backstage prep area, space, space, and more space). Sometimes a show will be MOUNTED in a gym with a stage, but the stage still has few of the conventional perks. This show, "Stone Soup," was mounted on a backyard patio with a simple backdrop, and a few cardboard houses.

Schedule - My rule of thumb for doing a 20-30 minute children’s theater production is to plan 20 to 25+ hours of rehearsal time. For a longer, more complicated show plan 30-35+ hours at a bare minimum. Now, MOUNTING a smaller in-class mini-musical with fewer complications may only take 6-10 hours of dedicated rehearsal/teaching time depending on how many extra teaching activities you want to include. Plan the schedule very carefully to work the children in short segments. Vary the activities every 10-15 minutes so that they stay invigorated through singing, movement, doing worksheets, thinking/memorizing/lecture time, and acting segments and still be able to get much accomplished in each session.

Practicing spacing for production number

Budget – Most shows can be MOUNTED with any amount of budget depending on how creative the Director is. Sets and Costumes can be very expensive especially when multiplied by the size of the cast. Some productions do not absolutely require elaborate sets and costumes. Find shows that have suggestions for alternate ways to MOUNT them. Decide what you can afford and design the production accordingly

Vocal Coach doubles as scenic painter

Helpers – In order to do a musical, the main “helpers” are the Director, Assistant Director (or producer), musical director or vocal coach, stage manager, choreographer, costumer, and scenic designer, and they may even want helpers to help them. If you do not have people to do these jobs, the few helpers available must do all of the jobs. Depending on the size of the cast, try to use the 10:1 rule. For every 8-10 children have at least one adult helper. That way, the jobs can be equally divided and the children’s varied activities can be more easily managed. (Junior Staff helpers can be a bonus!)

Junior Staffers helping teach choreography

So, once again, the production has to be designed within the confines of the space available. In order to be successful, Directors must be creative! Sometimes the show won’t move to the stage until the last couple of rehearsals. In order to effectively rehearse, the rehearsal space must closely match the stage dimensions. Be sure to measure and set up barriers as necessary to make the practice space resemble closely the feeling of the actual stage.

So get out there and start MOUNTING one of the Musicals or Mini-Musicals on this site! Break a leg!

Delightful Audience Interaction

7/22/2025

Small theater space, small cast, perfect conditions for delightful audience interactions. My sister and I went to see "The Play That Went Wrong" in a brand new theater. The Hale Center Theater in Orem used to do theater-in-the-round in a building that had been converted from a house. Now they built a a new, high tech facility with 2 theaters and lots of bells and whistles. I'm just glad that they still have one small theater that has the feel of that old very intimate theater space.

The show was face-paced, well acted, and very funny. Most impressive was the set design that featured lots of elements that went wrong like the elevator where the bottom fell out and it stopped halfway between floors. Or the balcony that kept teetering on falling down while people were still trying to stand on it. More and other dramatic "disasters" happened throughout the show, but the actors kept whispering to the audience assurances that no one was going to get hurt. That show was especially fun for theater folks who have done productions where things go wrong. It was filled with scenarios that we ourselves have experienced or perhaps even caused to happen during a show. We laughed a lot!

Last night a good portion of the audience was made up of teenagers attending a 2-week Broadway Theater Camp at BYU. Those 100 or so kids were so excited, they reacted instantly and audibly to whatever the actors on stage were doing. And the actors kept including them in their antics. It made the experience of seeing that show so enjoyable!

Getting instant audience feedback during a performance "feeds" the performers. As an actor, if you get good reactions from the audience through their giggles, smiles, gasps, and even sobs, you give a much better performance. Feeling that electricity from an expressive audience can really boost the power of the individual performers.

One of my shows, "The Adventures of Dick Whittington," was designed to include the audience as in Old English Pantomime. We primed the audience to give audible reactions to what what going on during the play and to even sing along on some of the songs. True, it was a daring experiment, but it worked. The premiere performance was at an elementary school with a large audience. Still, I got so many comments about how audience members were sitting up in their chairs ready and willing to engage in the show and eagerly anticipating the cues to sing along. So fun!

They Couldn't Help Themselves

6/29/2025

The premiere performance of my new children's theater musical "No Time for Monkey Business" happened yesterday. I count it a success when the audience goes home singing the songs. As well-wishers came up to me after the performance, that was practically all they would say, or sing rather. "What a beautiful day...the sun is shining..." or they'd say, "Those songs were so catchy!" Many literally said that they couldn't help themselves, they just kept singing the songs. They were stuck in their heads.

We tried to construct a jungle set with craft paper vines and tissue paper flowers made by the kids.

We were lucky. We only had one minor disaster during the show. Partway through the first big number a blast of wind came up and blew down the drapes in the back. They didn't fall far, fortunately, and my daughter jumped into action along with another tall friend to fix the problem. Apparently, they were so discreet that many in the audience were unaware of the situation. Another of my daughters who was the Stage Manager on that side of the stage found herself too busy calling cues and handing out props to do anything about the set problem. She was thankful that other people swiftly acted. So was I!

The flats were painted by Tiffany Lee and her two daughters Indie and London.

When you consider that the set was held together mainly by masking tape, cotton string, and safety pins, it is amazing that it held together at all. To think that a set built of styrofoam, bed sheets and construction paper had the hope of lasting through a day of wind, heat, and sun on an outdoor patio is actually pretty presumptuous, I admit. We knew we couldn't risk setting anything up the day before and leaving it over night, so we got up at the crack of dawn to build the stage with great hope that it could last until noon when the show would be over. And most of it did just fine.

These are the drapes that blew off the pipe that was holding them up.

With the real possibility that many things could go wrong, I am just glad that so many things went right and that the audience seemed to enjoy the show. They told me that the show was delightful and the songs were so catchy. They said that they appreciated how it had such a great message of learning to take responsibility. They were happy that the children would have such a wonderful memory to take with them through their lives.

Creating a Catchy Title

3/8/2025

Some authors I admire are so good with words! They have a knack for coming up with memorable phrases or pithy puns. I especially admire the power of catchy Titles. Take for instance the Disney movie "Tangled" that is the story of Rapunzel. Now the girl's name is the normal title of the fairy tale, but "Tangled" gives it an added comedic flair. Those of us who have daughters that we try to keep their hair managed know immediately how descriptive the title "Tangled" is. We all have our own memories of fighting with our daughters over the fuss of combing out the tangled knots of "bed head" hair in the mornings.

(Straightening out granddaughter CJ's hair in the mornings is not usually a smiling, happy affair!)

"The Monkey and the Fox" is a very short Aesop Fable that I am attempting to fill out to become a new show for this year's Summer Theater Camp. My first inclination is to use "Monkey Business" somewhere in the title. Truly, there are a lot of silly shenanigans with the Monkey and his pals in the script. However, the Monkey is not the hero of the Tale. In fact, the moral of the story is that "someone who cannot control himself should not be the one leading a kingdom."

The real hero of this Fable is the Fox who displays wisdom and selfless leadership skills. Near the beginning of the story, the old Lion King dies, and because the Monkey parades himself around draped in the royal robes of the old King, the jungle animals mistakenly view him as kingly, and elect him their King. Then, as the story plays out, the Fox thinks it is his duty to watch out for and even save the silly Monkey from his un-kingly ways.

The Fox continually warns the Monkey that he should take better care of himself. Finally, even the Fox gets tired of always rescuing the Monkey. Eventually, he lets the headstrong, unthinking, silly Monkey fall into the trap set by the trio of Tricky Trappers.

The last the jungle animals see of their King is when the Trappers haul off the Monkey from their trap. Only then do the animals realize that the Fox should be their ruler. They have a quick meeting and soon crown the Fox as the rightful King of the Jungle.

So, do I use "Monkey Business" in the title or keep searching for something that honors the wisdom of the Fox?

It's a problem.

In the meantime, I am finding fun costume ideas.

* * * * * * * * * * *

This just in --- My daughter Cami suggested a title: "No Time for Monkey Business." I think that's just right. I'm going with that.

Chinese New Year

1/7/2025

Chinese New Year, or the Lunar New Year, or the Festival of the New Moon, or, the Spring Festival, are all names for basically the same event each year.

In Chinese culture, Chinese New Year, and Lunar New Year have the same meaning, although the former is still the preferred term. That is because Chinese New Year goes beyond the commonly-known animal zodiac system and incorporates other cultural and religious elements from ancient Chinese culture. It is the most important Festival in Chinese culture.

When my youngest children were very young, we were given a book titled "The Empty Pot" by the artist Demi. One of our friends kept talking about how that book would make a good Children's Theater production. Finally, I decided that indeed that ancient Chinese folktale would make a good musical and I could make that happen.

The story is so beautiful because it tells of a young boy with a green-thumb that shows his integrity. The Old Emperor gives out seeds to all of the children and tells them that whoever grows the most magnificent flower from his seed will become Emperor. What he doesn't tell them is that the seeds are poisoned. None of them could actually grow.

In a year's time, at the Spring Festival, the children come before the Emperor with their flowers. Only one boy brings an empty pot to present to the Emperor. In exasperation, the old Emperor divulges how he doesn't know where the children got their flowering plants because all the seeds he gave out were poisoned. Only one boy had the integrity to bring his empty pot. That boy is declared the new Emperor.

The first version of "The Empty Pot" was 30 minutes in length. It works well for a younger cast. I have since written an expanded version of the show with featured older characters and special songs. "A Successor to the Throne" (60 minute show for ages 5-14) has become a favorite Children's Musical in part because it shows the seasons changing over the course of a year.

Alternatives to Christmas Shows

10/28/2024

Characters from "Parizade's Quest"

As I am writing this post, it is three days away from Halloween. And yet I have been noticing some posts asking for help with finding a "Winter" themed children's musical that is not Christmas or snow related. Sounds to me that this show could actually be anything.

We raised our children in areas of the country where winters were just not as hot as the summers, and we never had snow. Still, if the elementary school show was slated to be mounted in December, we still had a holiday theme including Christmas and snow songs. But maybe, at those schools, the teachers are just looking for something different.

Last Friday I attended an orchestra concert that was themed around Superheroes and Fairy Tale Princesses. The music was mostly from Disney movies and the Marvel comics franchise. But what made the concert fun was all of the different costumes. Even the conductors wore themed costumes. For example, the "Superman" theme by John Williams was conducted by Superman, and a medley from the movie "Frozen" was conducted by Elsa, the Snow Queen, etc.

That got me thinking, how about doing an Elementary School show using a generic theme that everyone gets into like "Fairy Tales" or "Super Heroes" or "Tales from Far Away Places." Here are some possible candidates from my catalogue:

"The Frog Prince" - this little show can be produced simply, and a lot of costumes might already be owned by the kids, aka princess dresses.

"Momotaro" - this famous superhero story from Japan can be mounted simply using Kabuki stylizations and masks.

"The Adventures of Dick Whittington" - this show is based on an Old English Pantomime that is often done at Christmastime in England still after 400 years.

"Parizade's Quest" - there's nothing better than transporting your audience to distant lands and times in one of the "1001 Tales of the Arabian Nights."

Seems strange that an elementary school music teacher would be only now looking for help finding a show to mount just a month away. It takes me months of preparation to get even a small show prepared to perform. Perhaps, though, they are thinking long-range towards mounting a show NEXT Christmas.

Who knows.

Enjoy this clip of "Come with Me" the Opener to "Parizade's Quest" performed by 4th and 5th graders from Provost Elementary School.

People are so Clever

10/15/2024

It is easy to get depressed about your own creative efforts when you compare them to other people's creative efforts. There is a children's book writer and artist who has made podcasts about illustration for years. I started following his podcasts when I was first looking for inspiration for writing my own children's books. His name is Shoo Rayner, out of the UK. Lately, after going through some hard knocks in his own life, he has been posting about getting back to the basics to find inspiration to write and illustrate again. I hope he finds his way. I have certainly learned a lot from him.

When I look at other creative people's work, I find it hard to be rational about my own work. The talent and abilities they display are so great in my estimation, and my own seem so lacking. But then again, if we don't get distracted by negative feelings, we can always learn something from them. And if we continue on a learning path, we can grow in our abilities.

The trick is to keep focused on your own goals. Your talents are not the same as someone else's. They are yours. It's up to you to work with them and develop as you can.

Over the years, I have had two big desires.

One is to write Children's Musicals for the youngest actors. But I did not want to "dumb down" the material so much that an adult audience couldn't enjoy the material. And I have especially wanted to provide songs and stories that promote good character values. So, I have been very careful to focus particularly on those things.

The costumes, props, sets designs, overly produced accompaniment tracks, and anything else just had to remain in second, third or last place. My goal was to provide pieces that the youngest actors ages 5-11 could enjoy and learn to perform well. I had to force myself NOT to be discouraged by other people's works that really excelled at all of that other stuff. That could not be my focus.

Another desire I've had is to document the funny family stories we have told in our family for years. I felt that these stories needed to be passed on from generation to generation. I may not be the best artist or storyteller, but I can do my best at passing along these stories through the medium of children's picture books.

I have toyed with the idea of trying to get these storybooks published. I have even sent in a couple manuscripts to be reviewed by editors. Two comments came back, "These are obviously family stories. They lack the general appeal for a national market." And "You should always write in simple prose, not verse."

In one of the Shoo Rayner podcasts, he also commented about how people like to send him stories asking him to illustrate them. He said how hard it is to illustrate a story that is so obviously a family story. It's all about the prospective audience. And sometimes, the only people to appreciate them are the ones who already appreciate the people in the story or understand the "inside" jokes. Obviously, a writer is sometimes not the best judge of his own work or the targeted audience.

Being a composer, I like to write in verse. And, as far as target audience goes, my family is pretty large. I guess I don't really mind keeping my focus on my posterity as my target audience.

Still, I can't help admiring clever people and their amazing works.

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