CHICAGO at high school level?
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Topic: CHICAGO at high school level?
Posted By: Mr. Lowell
Subject: CHICAGO at high school level?
Date Posted: 5/07/10 at 9:00pm
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Who has done Chicago in a high school theatre gotten away with the language and adult subject matter? Thanks, Dana ------------- Mr. Lowell, Lighting/Set Designer & Tech Director, for the Linda Sloan Theatre, in the Davison Center for the Arts, at Greensboro Day School |
Replies:
Posted By: pdavis69
Date Posted: 5/09/10 at 11:40am
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If you have to ask if you can get away with it, I would ask why are you trying to get away with it? There are many many shows which are appropriate for that age group, why are so many schools trying to do shows which are clearly not? Society is doing enough to overly sexualize our youth. Do our theatres need to jump in as well. Look at our High School cheerleaders bumping and grinding on the sidelines. The only thing missing is the stripper pole. Chicago, Rent and others are clearly innappropriate for this age group. ------------- Patrick L. Davis Fort Findlay Playhouse |
Posted By: Mr. Lowell
Date Posted: 5/09/10 at 2:04pm
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The appeal of CHICAGO, as well as A CHORUS LINE and other adult shows, at the high school level is not the content, obviously, but the fact that there are so few musicals for an ensemble of good female soloists.
When you have a "deep bench" of a dozen young ladies, any of whom could handle a leading role, it's hard to find a show that is not merely a "star vehicle" for just one girl. Plus, many musicals call for a diffinitive leading man type, or several dynamic male singers, and those are rather rare at many schools.
So the ongoing issue in high school theatre is not any kind of demand for "adult content shows", but a demand for more shows that better suit the available talent pool you typically find at this age level.
Distributors sometimes make "junior versions" of shows, where the content is cleaned up a little. I heard there is a "school version" of RENT, but I have yet to hear any details about a production of it. If a school were to book a show such as CHICAGO or A CHORUS LINE with the intention censoring out words, songs or characters, then I understand that the publishing company would promptly yank the rights away from that school!
I have no "say" whatsoever in the title selection here, so this is mostly curiousity on my part. What I am looking for in this discussion is:
-One, are there examples out there where schools ran into controversy over subject matter on the musical CHICAGO, in particular.
-Two, what would be a good list of all the prospective shows that adequately showcase the female vocal talents of more than just the title character.
-And three, I wonder if forum members could put together a list of "untouchable" shows that they could never get away with in their theatre.
Thanks, Dana
------------- Mr. Lowell, Lighting/Set Designer & Tech Director, for the Linda Sloan Theatre, in the Davison Center for the Arts, at Greensboro Day School |
Posted By: Mr. Lowell
Date Posted: 5/09/10 at 8:10pm
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Here are two articles on the topic CHICAGO in high schools. The first is about one high school in particular: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/10/27/AR2009102701580.html - http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/10/27/AR2009102701580.html
And the second article is about "appropriate shows" in general:
http://voices.washingtonpost.com/answer-sheet/arts-education/should-student-dramaproduction.html?sid=ST2009102801399 - http://voices.washingtonpost.com/answer-sheet/arts-education/should-student-dramaproduction.html?sid=ST2009102801399
I recommend both articles on this subject and hope to see more. Thanks. ------------- Mr. Lowell, Lighting/Set Designer & Tech Director, for the Linda Sloan Theatre, in the Davison Center for the Arts, at Greensboro Day School |
Posted By: donzolidis
Date Posted: 5/09/10 at 11:39pm
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This is certainly a subject that is near and dear to my heart. When I was in high school, my school, a fairly large public school in Wisconsin, produced A CHORUS LINE. I'm sure the script must have been edited somewhat, because I don't recall too many gay characters, but T##s and A## was certainly unedited. I remember that song clearly. There was absolutely no stink about it - of course, this was 1991 when things were more relaxed.
I've written a number of plays that have had checkered histories with the censors. One of my shows was banned in Arkansas, and my best play for high schoolers has been produced only once because it inevitably makes administrations nervous.
In my case, I was writing about teenagers and trying to be accurate to the way they live and speak. And that, of course, is what made it inappropriate for performance by teenagers to an audience of teenagers.
It baffles me that my middle school students are allowed to line up every weekened for the newest PG-13 horror/torture movie and yet their parents find it appalling that they use a word like "suck" (as in "this sucks") in performance.
Not to argue too explicitly for Chicago, but my argument in a nutshell comes down to this: We are losing our young audience. We lose them from the ages of 12-17. Children love the theatre. Go to a show with an audience of 4th graders and you'll see the most engaged, thrilled group of audience members imaginable. Somewhere between that age and when they become adults young people decide that the theatre is stuffy, old-fashioned and doesn't have any application to their lives.
Why? Because the shows that are "appropriate" for them bear absolutely no resemblence to the world in which they live. If we were allowed to do plays that involved people that spoke like they actually do and dealt with problems in a realistic manner (and there are some plays out there, they're just few and far between), then maybe young people would come to realize that art could be about them and speak to them. And maybe that would bring them back for more. Instead, we do The Crucible for the 9000th time, or Arsenic and Old Lace, or You Can't Take it With You. Good plays of course, but up-to-date? Hardly.
Chicago isn't exactly up-to-date either, but it's liable to send a charge through the audience that they didn't realize was possible in live theatre. And that's enough of a reason to consider it.
Now... would I want my daughter dancing in fishnets, a boustier, and talking about screwing the mailman? Well... maybe not so much.
In a related topic, I just heard an interview on NPR with Isabelle Allende, world-famous author - she sends her mother highly edited copies of her books (with the dirty words and sex cut out) before they get published. So I don't think these issues are likely to go away. ------------- www.donzolidis.com |
Posted By: MartyW
Date Posted: 5/10/10 at 9:24am
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There is a fine (though it could use some additional darkening) line between: the reality of what children are faced with on a daily bases and are told is the norm, questionable subject matter from Hollywood and even more questionable parenting that allows kids to see that crap at an impressionable age, or play those video games that make sex and violence commonplace, As compared to a school/state sponsored event of the same ilk. Though we don't always do a great job in education of shining a light on the path of responsible citizenship and adulthood, I don't think we should use our life guiding influence to promote stuff that wouldn't even be accepted in some of our more conservative communities as C.T. fair.... Thanks, Rant complete... ------------- Marty W "Till next we trod the boards.." |
Posted By: tristanrobin
Date Posted: 5/10/10 at 8:49pm
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There are a bazillion fabulous plays out there which would have no problems whatsoever with performance AS WRITTEN for high schoolers. Why choose a play that is - without question - not suitable for teens? Sure. Kids use certain words in every day life...or, at the very least, hear them. But they do NOT say them in public or in front of their grandmothers, etc. There is a time and place for everything. A musical with adult theme, language, plot and choreography is just not appropriate for high schoolers. As most people here know, LOL, I'm far from a prude ... but I do not want to go hear some 10th or 11th grade girl screaming "you've been screwing the milkman, you've been screwing the milkman" on stage. I don't want to watch a young woman in high school doing choreography depicting "Number Seventeen, the Spread Eagle." And, if the only way we can get kids in the sixth, seventh, eighth grades interested in going to the theatre is by watching double entendres, pelvic thrusts and songs about adultery and murder, we're just not doing our job. Another rant over. ------------- http://tristanrobin.blogspot.com |
Posted By: satur91
Date Posted: 5/19/10 at 11:31pm
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we did the show 4 years ago... it was great. (Perf. Arts HS) Audience loved it. Some said it was better than the touring production. we had teenage girls in (tasteful) lingerie for the cell block Tango scene... we also did Noises Off with an 18yr old in lingerie. I think the basic line is: if its good and "tasteful" you can get away with anything. |
Posted By: MartyW
Date Posted: 5/20/10 at 8:06am
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I think there is (not that it necessarily "should be") a distinct difference between a performing arts High School and general ed institution. I also think (as previously stated) that if your intent is to do theater with kids, then there is PLENTY of material out there that does not go over the edge with material that many of our community theaters would feel uncomfortable producing. There is a place for all genres of theater I don't think a HS is the place for this. I also think if the only way you can get your kids interested in theater is to do Chicago, chorus line, rent etc, then your are (IMHO) doing something wrong. Save it for when they are older when they are looking for something with an edge... not when they are first starting out... ------------- Marty W "Till next we trod the boards.." |
Posted By: JoeMc
Date Posted: 5/21/10 at 2:06am
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What age group are High School students? I thought when the 'tin lids' gain thier driving licence, as they believe, they become Adults!  ------------- [western] Gondawandaland "Hear the light & see the sound! TOI TOI CHOOKAS {may you always play to a full house!} |
Posted By: MartyW
Date Posted: 5/21/10 at 8:48am
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14 - 18 But it's not so much if they are or whether they, their parents or even an agency of the state considers them adults, its a school... And if we are still confined in how we talk to them, what we teach them. etc etc and if we can't tell them to get thier T & A's moving, we shouldn't be encouraging them to say it and act it on the stage... (IMHO) They go to a theater that wants to make it happen, no problem... But school, nope... ------------- Marty W "Till next we trod the boards.." |
Posted By: Mr. Lowell
Date Posted: 5/26/10 at 9:26am
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It's likely that my high school theatre will never be able to do the following, due to adult content, language and situations:
CHICAGO
A CHORUS LINE
THE PRODUCERS
And then there are some borderline shows that might be a tough sell and would likely need some careful treatment:
CABARET
SWEENEY TODD
HAIR
JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR
A FUNNY THING...FORUM
EVITA
RAGTIME
URINETOWN
By the way, for next season, we just booked EVITA.
------------- Mr. Lowell, Lighting/Set Designer & Tech Director, for the Linda Sloan Theatre, in the Davison Center for the Arts, at Greensboro Day School |