Meredith Willson once said, ". . .when you start a play and you type 'Act one, scene one,' your writing is every bit as good as Arthur Miller or Eugene O'Neill or anyone. It's that fifth word where amateurs start to go wrong."
Last week I went to see a production of Meredith Willson's "The Music Man" done as a "Junior" production performed by mostly late elementary to young teen-aged kids. The show was done simply by a community children's theater company. Much of it was done very well. And it was fun seeing one of my grand nephews singing and acting in the show. (Such a cute guy!)
However, by definition, a Junior production is shortened and much of the original script is whittled away. Unfortunately, with that goes much of the brilliance of the show. (This was Meredith Willson's masterpiece, for heaven's sake!) It's just hard for me to watch a show that I have directed, and worked so hard to get to know intimately, missing so many of the best parts. These kids did their best, I'm sure. I do not fault them. I just had a hard time with that slashed script and score.
Another thing that is difficult for me when watching a Junior version of a big Broadway show is when the parts are mostly played by treble voices. It's hard to follow and be able to distinguish characters when their voices are pitched in the same octave. Young actors don't have the mature vocal chops to pull off the sophisticated vocal arrangements in SATB or TTBB, either. For example, in this show, the poor barbershop quartet was mostly unison with a little 2-part harmony. (It was a sad point, indeed.)
I applaud Children's Theater Companies that choose material to perform that fits the talents in their group. The best vehicles are shows that are short enough for children to learn in the allotted time, have characters that can be portrayed convincingly by child actors, with songs written in ranges that fit the kids' abilities. I realize that shows with a Broadway or Movie heritage have more box office draw, but they do not necessarily work the best for children and adolescents.
Besides, I don't like the idea of messing with a composer's masterpiece...
However, by definition, a Junior production is shortened and much of the original script is whittled away. Unfortunately, with that goes much of the brilliance of the show. (This was Meredith Willson's masterpiece, for heaven's sake!) It's just hard for me to watch a show that I have directed, and worked so hard to get to know intimately, missing so many of the best parts. These kids did their best, I'm sure. I do not fault them. I just had a hard time with that slashed script and score.
Another thing that is difficult for me when watching a Junior version of a big Broadway show is when the parts are mostly played by treble voices. It's hard to follow and be able to distinguish characters when their voices are pitched in the same octave. Young actors don't have the mature vocal chops to pull off the sophisticated vocal arrangements in SATB or TTBB, either. For example, in this show, the poor barbershop quartet was mostly unison with a little 2-part harmony. (It was a sad point, indeed.)
I applaud Children's Theater Companies that choose material to perform that fits the talents in their group. The best vehicles are shows that are short enough for children to learn in the allotted time, have characters that can be portrayed convincingly by child actors, with songs written in ranges that fit the kids' abilities. I realize that shows with a Broadway or Movie heritage have more box office draw, but they do not necessarily work the best for children and adolescents.
Besides, I don't like the idea of messing with a composer's masterpiece...
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