What's the best choice?

[susan?]

I teach high school and this year we've got a really strong bunch of kids coming up and I want do something more legit... you know, not Grease or the Wizard of Oz- something different from what everyone does.

Problem is- we've done Once upon a Mattress, Fame, Fiddler on the Roof since this bunch as been at the school. PLUS- a lot of them were involved in school system wide productions of Aida and Les Miz, 3 schools in our area just did Millie, and I taught several of them at summer camp where we did Into the Woods.


We were considering Ragtime, but we don't know if we've got quite the right combo....

We've got 1 girl with a great range and quality who can sing anything. 2 with fantastic belting voices and one with a beautiful more operatic classical voice.

As far as guys go, we've got 3 awesome baritones and 2 amazing tenors.

We've got plenty of good choral singers to fill in an ensemble

I'm at my wits end- help!

[matthewTN]

You might think about the Sound of Music - there are more singing roles in the stage version than in the movie - the Baroness and Max both have sining parts, and Climb Every Mountain is great for a more operatic voice.

[jason]

Hi,

First - wow, I wish you were my high school drama teacher! Sounds like you have a wonderful department. You didn't mention whether or not you have talented dancers. With that said, 5 shows came to mind:

Carousel http://stageagent.com/shows.php?id=708 - Amazing show that needs to be performed more often. Totally legit with beautiful music.
A funny thing happened on the way to the forum http://stageagent.com/shows.php?id=726 - Fun show with lots of great parts.
Chess http://stageagent.com/shows.php?id=843- Good show for belters
South Pacific http://stageagent.com/shows.php?id=749 - Similar to Carousel, great classic that seems to be rarely performed by high schools.
The Secret Garden http://stageagent.com/shows.php?id=1121 - Wonderful music & story - though you would need a few little kids (or cast some freshmen )

Break a leg!

[nyjfan]

I was trying to think of what the best show to use all of the talent you have would be, and the only show that came to mind was CATS. The problem is, it requires an amazing set/costumes and an amazing cast of dancers in order to be done correctly.

I was thinking another option you have is to double-cast a show. I just finished a production of Miss Saigon where I was double-cast as Chris (I did fridays, he did saturdays) and it worked out incredibly well. Although, the cast I was working with was incredibly proffessional about their work ethic, so if you have a catty-cast (like most casts are) it might not work that well.

I hope I could be of some help!

[mikitheactor]

The show that immediately comes to mind with the talent you listed is "The Mystery of Edwin Drood" I've been involved with the show twice (acted once) and it was a BLAST. it's the kind of show that really bonds a cast together (lots of chances for improv skills, dancing can either be intense or almost non-existant - I've seen it done both ways)

It's not terribly well known by the general public, but it's SO MUCH FUN!!!

http://www.stageagent.com/shows.php?id=813

[Dancergirl]

Anything Goes has good vocal scores for the talent you said you have. It is a really fun, comedic show with a lot of fun dancing.

[Phantom997]

Anything Goes is a good show, but Godspell would also be a great choice (you can involve as many people as you want, since most of the actors will "play themselves".)

[starflower]

What about Pirates of Penzance? I'm in it now, and it has 5 nice parts for girls and 4 for guys. Dancing can be complicated or simple, depending on your cast's ability, and the sets are minimal. You should definately look into it.

[susan?]

Ran a few of the ideas by the other drama teacher at our school. Ultimately, I think most of the choice lays with me since I will be working with the chorus teacher on the musical.

We have decent dancers, but I wouldn't want to try anything too intense. I was thinking about Edwin Drood, but I can not find a copy of the music to listen to first. Calling Tams Witmark about that tomorrow probably. Chess would be awesome- something to think about for sure. As far as double casting, we've double cast things before and it's worked fairly well- so it's a thought.

Currently in the running now we've got Pirates of Penzance (although it's tempting to "save" it for next year because it would work well with the kids we've got left next year), Ragtime. We've totally ruled out Jekyll and Hyde but are considering a new musical about Jack the Ripper by a local artist.

[klpm97420]

You might consider Bye Bye Birdie. It's a play that kids love to do and dancing can be easy or involved. Audience reaction is upbeat and fun.