I LOVE these - as a teacher in a high school - for me they are invaluable. 

One reason is because they come with a back up CD.  There's no way I can get an orchestra to play at my school so the CD is a God send!

And the kids get to keep the scripts so they can write all over them and take a million notes etc. -- great for a learning enviroment.

They are also very cheap comapred to the big shows (royalties etc.)

We did Into the Woods Jr. last year.  It's basically just the first act of the show.  It was perfect because I had the talent to do the show but we hadn't the time to rehearse the whole show.

When we do them we treat them like the 'real thing' as much as we can.  I know that one could even do them as a musical review type thing (no sets, just risers etc.) But we just do it as a shorter version of the big show.

Also they are advertised as 'Jr.' shows.  

I love 'em, love 'em, love 'em!

  

Oooooh!  Who would have thunk it?  Heated contoversy over Jr. musicals!  And here's my two cents: I think that Jr. theater is either wonderful or deplorable entirely on a show-to-show basis.  For example, local children's theater production of Le Mis: BAD!  Version of Into the Woods: GOOD!  But it makes sense, folks!  I mean, a bunch of kids playing prostitutes and revolutionaries is bound to be terrible, right?  They just don't have the chops: musical chops, acting chops, any chops!  However, Into the Woods Jr., which is more or less the first act, is a particularly wonderful fairy tale for children.  The real version isn't even appropriate for small children, you know?  It taps into many more adult sentiments and situations.  In fact, the local theater company (and these guys have one beacoup de awards and could have done anything they wanted) mounted both Into the Woods and Into the Woods Jr. at the same time, one version for adults and another for children to see.  They were both wonderful. 
HOWEVER, if one does not have the resources to put on a full scale musical, I DO NOT understand why one suddenly has the capability to put on a Jr. show.  If you don't have the resources, that's it, to my mind.  (Unless you have the talent, but not the technicals, in which case I fully endorse concert style musicals.) A poorly done musical is poorly done no matter how short it is.   And there are so many other great, non-musical kids shows to do instead.  I know, I write some of them.

Very interesting discussion!  I agree with emro - depends on the musical!

There are certain subjects, musical or non musical, that are appropriate for production by young casts.  There are others that are not, because of the subject matter, or that the student actors would have a hard time pulling off.  It is often difficult to figure out which is which.

For example, the only convincing production of "South Pacific" that I have seen (including the movie versions) was a high school musical, with a 16 year old moving me to tears during "Some Enchanted Evening".  On the other hand, I haven't seen a community or high school production of "Fiddler on the Roof" that has transported to me to another time or place or made me forget that intermission wasn't far off.

The answer to almost any question is "it depends".  We are doing "Wizard of Oz" as a junior production next spring, but we are doing the full RSC version because we have the cast and the technical capabilities to do it (or so we think).  But we have looked at several of the MTI junior productions (especially Disney) for our very young children, and have done a couple of the Hal Leonard packaged musicals with them because of the production assistance the packaging provides.

 

What?  Rent without drug references or swearing?  Okay, here goes . . .

Mark:  My bohemian lifestyle causes me angst.  Plus, I'm broke.

Roger:  Mine also.  Plus, I'm not leaving the apartment, because of something in my past which I can't mention in this version.

Tom:  Hi, I have returned from Boston, where having an actual job and money made me miss the angst and brokeness of your bohemian lifestyles.

Mark:  Hi Coll . . .

Tom:  Don't call me that.  My first and last name together constitute a drug reference.

Mark:  Sorry.

Angel:  Hi, I'm a highly sympathetic street musician who is dying from a hangnail.

Roger:  Where'd you get all that money?

Angel:  By helping an old lady across the street.  Let's all go to my Hangnail Support Group.

Roger:  My angst is too great.  I will stay here.  (The others leave)

Mimi:  Hi, do you have any C batteries?

Roger:  What happened to your candle?

Mimi:  No fire in front of the kiddies.

Support Group People:  Will I lose my dignity?  Of course not.

Roger:  Is that a donkey you brought in with you?

Mimi:  Yep.  They say I have the best ass below Fourteenth Street.

Roger:  Think we'll get away with that one?

Mimi:  No.

Maureen:  The cow jumped over the moon.

Tom:  I love you, Maureen.

Angel:  I thought you loved me.

Tom:  Not in this version.

Angel:  Okay, then, I love Joanne.

Joanne:  I love you, Angel.

Roger:  I love you, Mimi.

Mimi:  I love you, Roger.

Mark:  I love myself.

Tom:  I hate you, Maureen.

Maureen:  I hate you, Tom.

Roger:  I hate you, Mimi.

Mimi:  I hate you, Roger.

Mark:  I hate myself.

(Angel dies of his hangnail)

Everybody except Mark:  Now that Angel is dead, I love you all again.

Mark:  Not me.

(Mimi almost dies of prickly heat)

Mark:  Okay, if Mimi's going to almost die, I love you all.

(All hug)

Angel:  Hey, guys, I didn't really die either.

All: Yay!  (They hug again)

All sing:  Five hundred twenty-five thousand six hundred minutes

              In which nothing bad happens

              not really.

(Curtain.)

Hey, if kids don't learn about drugs, homosexuals and angst in high school, where else are they gonna learn?  The street?