Show Time!: Music, Dance, and Drama Activities for Kids FROM THE PUBLISHER
Kids learn to become triple performers, developing their skills as singers, dancers, and actors through more than 80 activities that include imitating a musician or musical instrument, acting out a song, creating a mirror dance, making puppets and playbills.
SYNOPSIS
Gotta dance! Gotta sing! Gotta do most anything because it's show time! In Show Time! kids will learn to become "triple threat" performers, developing their skills as singers, dancers, and actors through more than 80 activities that include imitating a musician or musical instrument, acting out a song, creating a mirror dance, making puppets and playbills, and more. Along the way, they'll learn about the history of musicals, discover musicals about history, and find out how to get it all together before the curtain goes up. Show Time! is perfect for teachers needing to prepare performers for a show; for parents looking for fun ways to fill spare minutes with their kids at home, in the car, or in a doctor's waiting room; and for kids wanting ways to enjoy themselves on their own or in a small group. Several play scripts, a list of suggested musicals for kids, and a play glossary are included.
FROM THE CRITICS
Children's Literature - Childrens Literature
As the title states, this book offers a potpourri of ideas for adults working with children in drama, and for serious young thespians to undertake on their own. Field-tested theater warm-up games and activities will start kids improvising, directing and even writing. The author, who works in children's theater in the Chicago area, presents the scope of musical theater from one of the first musicals, Pirates of Penzance, right up to the present day, with mention of The Lion King, and includes good background information about types of musicals and their categories. Seven performance-ready scripts are a nice bonus in the back of the book. 2000, Chicago Review Press Inc., Ages 6 to 12, $14.95. Reviewer: Martha Shaw—Children's Literature
School Library Journal
Gr 3-6-An introduction to musical theater. The author covers the history of musicals from those inspired by Shakespeare to those written by Sondheim in one- and two-page chapters with added tidbits in sidebars. Creating musicals from poetry, basic acting preparation, rhythm and dance, and creative dramatics form the basis for activities. There are games, scenes for experimentation, and short scripts to stage. Many activities are physical in nature, and would work well with groups of young actors. The directions are given in organized steps. Some of the activities are quite creative and will challenge even the more seasoned performers. A few games involve vocal expression, but adults could add sound to any number of the activities; indeed, many invite experimentation. Simple drawings add a friendly touch. Since the book looks at musical theatre from so many points of view, it will be useful for different pursuits, e.g., teachers, directors working with young actors, and children looking for direction in theatrical ventures.-Cris Riedel, Ellis B. Hyde Elementary School, Dansville, NY Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.
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