Introduction to Musical theatre: Musical Theatre Foundations I

Session Design by: Kimberly Lamping and Molly Cameron

LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Content Standards

Utah Theatre Foundations I Standard 2: Objective 2A

o Demonstrate a clear voice when communicating in performance.
Utah Theatre Foundations I Standard 2: Objective 5A
o Demonstrate rehearsal warm-up.
Utah Music Aesthetics Standard 3:Objective 2C
o Describe the emotions and thoughts the music communicates and analyze
how it does so.
Enduring Understandings

Students will understand that music and lyrics can enhance a theatrical
performance by conveying emotions and thoughts in a unique way.

Students will understand that musical theatre requires the ability to sing using
proper technique and stay in character both while singing and while speaking,
even if in the ensemble.
Skills

Students will be able to properly breathe (as described in the learning plan) while
performing in musical theatre.
Students will be able to sing in musical phrases (as described in the learning
plan).
Students will be able to exhibit the correct singing posture, standing in alignment
and free from tension.

Assessments
Performance tasks

Students will participate in an instructor lead warm-up in which they breathe

from the diaphragm in order to demonstrate their ability to properly breathe.

Students will participate in an instructor lead warm-up in which they stretch their
arms, neck, head, back, abdomen and legs in order to demonstrate the correct
singing posture free from tension.

Students will perform in a sing along in small groups in order to demonstrate

singing in musical phrases.
Teacher Materials
4 different pieces of music.
o Note: Can use the following links if desired.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VjPAWbk5jKcTh
Scary/suspenseful
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t5Q5FFWRxCE
Happy
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pUZeSYsU0Uk

Sad
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NtaS47nbDqI
Angry

Student Materials
Paper
Pen or pencil to write with
Sheet music of a song for each student.
o Tale as Old as Time from Beauty and the Beast. See attached.
Hook:
1.

Students will listen to 4 different pieces of music that evoke different

emotions. (See links in teacher material)
a. Emotions can include, but are not limited to:
i. Happy.
ii. Sad.
iii. Scared.
iv. Angry.
b. Students to move around the room, moving differently with each new
song according to the emotions in the music.
c. After each song ask:
i. How does this song make you feel?
ii. What emotions do you feel?
iii. Why did the song make you feel that way?
iv. How did you use your body and movement to convey the
emotion?

Process:
2. The facilitator leads the class in a demonstration of proper musical theatre
performance warm-up.
a. Explain that a proper warm-up for musical theatre consists of the
following four elements:
i. Engaging proper breathing.
ii. Stretching the body to remove tension,
iii. Standing in proper alignment to achieve appropriate posture
iv. Vocal exercises to warm-up the voice.
b. The facilitator will then lead the students in exercises for each element.
i. Engaging in proper breathing.
1. Students place their hands on their lower abdomen to
make sure air is coming from their diaphragm. Making
sure their stomachs are moving instead of their shoulders
and chest.
2. Students will do the following breathing exercises:
a. Squat and hold hands in front of body.

b. While in this position say: r-e-t-e p-i-k-a twice,

hitting each consonant sharply, engaging the
diaphragm.
c. Next say (sounds like a snake): s-s-s-s twice,
hitting each of the S sounds sharply, engaging
the diaphragm.
d. Next say: sh-sh-sh-sh twice, hitting each sh
sound sharply, engaging the diaphragm.
ii. Stretching the body to remove tension.
1. Students will lift each arm above their head with a bent
elbow to stretch the deltoids.
2. Students will cross each arm across their chest, using the
other arm to pull it close to stretch the shoulders.
3. Students will hold one foot at a time, with a bent knee,
from the back to stretch the thighs.
4. Students will hold their shins, while standing, as close
and high to their chest as possible to stretch the hips.
5. Students will take a wide stance, reach one arm at a time
over their head, and reach from one side to another to
stretch the obliques.
iii. Standing in proper alignment to achieve appropriate posture
1. Students will do neck rolls, stretching the neck to both
sides, up, down, and looking from left to right.
2. Students will bend at the waist to the floor, allowing the
neck to relax and then roll slowly back up, aligning each
vertebra until standing straight again.
iv. Vocal exercises to warm-up the voice.
1. Students will say various tongue twisters such as:
a. Red leather yellow leather
b. You know you need unique New York
c. One black beetle bled only black blood but the
other black beetle bled blue
d. Chester cheetah chews a chunk of cheap cheddar
cheese
2. Students will do lip buzzes to various exercises
including:
a. Scales
b. Slides of range
3. Students will sing a variety of scales.
c. Discuss with students elements that make up a proper musical theatre
warm-up to make sure they remember the following four elements from
above.
i. Engaging proper breathing.
ii. Stretching the body to remove tension,
iii. Standing in proper alignment to achieve appropriate posture
iv. Vocal exercises to warm-up the voice.

d. Assign groups of students to lead a proper warm-up each day.

3. Musical phrases
a. The facilitator explains that a musical phrase is a unit of musical meter
that has a complete musical sense of its own. Often built from figures,
motifs, and cells and combining to form melodies. Periods and larger
sections, or the length in which a singer or instrumentalist can play in
one breath also often indicate the end of a musical phrase.
b. Use a short song such as Twinkle Twinkle Little Star to give examples
of musical phrases.
i. Sing it with the students and make breaks at what they believe
are to be the end of musical phrases.
c. Give students sheet music to a well-known song.
i. Note: we used Tale as Old as Time from Beauty and the Beast.
d. Students will mark the music to indicate the musical phrases.
i. The easiest way is most likely with a hash mark.
e. Once done, students will then discuss where they marked the musical
phrases as a class.
f. The facilitator asks the following questions during the group discussion:
i. Why did you choose that particular place in the music?
ii. What indicated the musical phrase?
iii. Have students practice singing a musical phrase from the given
music.
Reflection:
4. Students will watch a video clip of Tale as Old as time from Beauty and the
Beast.
a. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eSRoYjRfjOc
i. Use a clip of the song you chose for the musical phrases activity.
b. While watching, students will answer the following questions on a blank
piece of paper:
i. Was proper posture being used by the actors?
ii. Were the actors breathing correctly between musical phrases?
iii. Even though the actors were singing, were they in character?

Day 2: Music and Emotions

Assign students their final project: to sing and act in a scene from a musical in groups
of 2-4 on the last day of this unit. Students will choose the scene outside of class and it
must be brought in for approval. Emphasize that you can help them pick a scene if
needed.
Have the first group demonstrate their rehearsal warm-up. Today will focus on how
music can communicate different emotions and thoughts and analyzing how it does so.
Students will listen to 3-4 given pieces of music and fill out a worksheet in in which
students carefully listen to each song and write down emotions that the song creates.

Answering questions such as: what made certain emotions and feelings stir up? What
was it about the music that created these feelings?

Day 3: Demonstrating Clear Voice

Have another group lead the warm-up. Today the facilitator will teach what it means to
demonstrate a clear voice when communicating in performance. Teach things such as
tone, pitch, and diction. Students will participate in activities that lead them to use
different combinations of these aspects both while singing and speaking.

Day 4: Dancing
Have another group lead the warm-up. Students will be introduced to basic dance.
They will be taught a few basic dance steps often seen in musical theatre and taught
some basic dance phrases. They will also watch some clips of musicals in which the
dance enhanced the overall performance.

Day 5: Creating their own dance.

Have another group lead the warm-up. Students will learn a few more difficult dance
steps or routines led by the facilitator. They will then use the steps they have learned
over the past few days in order to create their own small dance phrases. Each group
will then present their dance to the class and be given feedback on what they did well
and areas they can improve. Keeping in mind that they may want to choreograph
something in their final scene.

Day 6: Dressing the Stage

Have another group lead the warm-up. Today the facilitator will teach about acting
when not singing. Focusing on things like ensemble acting, or dressing the stage,
acting during the transitions, and of course staying in character while singing and
speaking. Students will choose a musical and create a character from the ensemble.
Giving them a name, background, and actions that they may realistically do while
onstage.

Day 7: Character analysis

Have another group lead the warm-up. Students will delve more deeply into character
analysis and staying in character at all times during a performance. They will each be
given a brief character description that like the previous day they have to create a name

and background. They will then be grouped with other students to participate in an
improvisational scene where they must come up with the actions for their character and
remain in character the whole scene.

Day 8: Rehearsal
Have another group lead the warm-up. Allow a full class period for students to
choreograph and rehearse their scenes. If needed the facilitator will help choose scenes.
While the groups are rehearsing the facilitator will walk around the room observing
and offering help if needed. Filling out a formative rubric to give to each group to
improve their performance for rehearsing the next day.

Day 9: Rehearsal
Have the final group lead the warm-up. Students will have another day of rehearsal in
which the facilitator again observes and gives feedback fro their final performance the
next period.

Day 10: Final performance

Students will present their scenes to the class. As they are watching have students fill out
a peer review rubric on elements such as staying in character, demonstrating proper
posture and breathing, did they communicate emotions and feelings through the music,
were they memorized, etc. There will then be a group discussion in which students
identify the scenes that used a combination of dance, vocal technique, and acting to better
enhance their script.