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| | September 18, 2007 | | These books are great for elementary school. | |
Today I approved the offering of a number of theatre
textbooks for elementary schools on our website. They’re specifically for
elementary school drama programs or classroom use. We thought about this quite a
bit and decided that our selection of drama textbooks needed more of these
books. I’ve worked with quite a few elementary schools in Denver and I normally
used Theatre Machine, one of our most popular books. However, we just
didn’t have items targeted for younger kids.
Many people ask me how Pioneer Drama Service finds them.
The main person who finds these books is Becca, an education specialist at
Pioneer. She works with many publishing companies. They send her numerous books
and she evaluates them. From there, when she has found a book that she thinks
would be a tremendous resource for teachers, drama directors or actors, we offer
them. Thanks to Becca, I think we have a great selection. | Topic Tags: children, drama, elementary school, plays, playscripts, reader's theater, reader's theatre, text, theater, theatre, theatre for reader's theatre, young | |
| | August 24, 2007 | | It's been a long time.... | I agree. It has been a long time. After working with dozens of people concerning blogs, it's not unusual for them to fizzle out. People get busy. Same with me. However, I'd like to share some of the things that have made Pioneer exciting. New plays. New writers. New catalogs. Our latest catalog is full color with a selection of over 500 plays, musicals and textbooks. Awesome! As for the new plays and writers, take a look below. I'm excited and I urge you to take a look at how they are contributing to the world of theatre. | | |
| | October 10, 2006 | | This playwright has incredible talent! | I’d like to personally congratulate Craig Sodaro on the publication of his new book MAKE IT MYSTERY. The book, which is now carried by Meriwether Publishing, contains twelve short royalty-free comedy-mystery plays. It’s workable for actors of all ages. Craig has written many plays for Pioneer Drama Service. In fact, he and I have a special “brainstorming” relationship. Many plays that Craig writes are a “collaboration” of thoughts. For example, Craig will soon be sending me a melodrama. Craig has written the show, which has a golf theme. However, it has been a wonderful experience exchanging ideas with him. Craig is a unique writer because he has a gift for writing different types of plays. Besides melodrama, he has ventured into mystery, comedy, musicals, and intense drama. I’m excited to see the golf melodrama. I’m even more excited to see what he writes next! | | |
| | August 23, 2006 | | Looking for interesting theatre sites to help theatre students learn about theatre? | | I often receive calls concerning teaching kids about drama. I constantly do research to find resources when working with elementary school children and middle school children. I have selected a number of intriguing sites to go to. Have fun! |
 |  | Charles and Mary Lamb, Tales from Shakespeare |  | Charmingly retold prose versions of twenty of the most popular plays. For kids 8-12. |  | http://shakespeare.palomar.edu/lambtales/LAMBTALE.HTM |
 |  | Dramania |  | "Drama-y Things to Do for Kids" with fun activities for One Person, Two People, Lots of People. A few links are broken, but these activities are delightful. For kids and their parents, 5-12. An older site, but still interesting. |  | http://www.public.asu.edu/~atbrl/dramania.html |
 |  | Dreaming Shakespeare |  | A PBS site with notes for parents and teachers to surf the site with their children. A fun story with a hip version of information about the plays; has quotes from Shakespeare. For kids 7-12. |  | http://pbskids.org/lions/dreaming/ |
 |  | Folger Shakespeare Library |  | A great site! Kept current. |  | http://www.folger.edu/index.cfm |
 |  | Holidays: Mexico, Los Dias de los Muertos, The Days of the Dead |  | Includes a skeleton puppet and instructions to create your own puppet play. For grades 3-5. |  | http://artswork.asu.edu/arts/students/holidays/muertos01.htm |
 |  | Pioneer Drama Service Texts and Aids |  | These theatre textbooks and theater aids are ideal for any individual thespian or for any drama department in need of educational resources. |  | http://www.pioneerdrama.com/text-aids.asp |
 |  | Lynch Multimedia: Shakespeare For kids |  | A BBC Education Web Guide with fun illustrations and adaptations of Macbeth, Hamlet, The Tempest, Winters Tale, Antony and Cleopatra, Merchant of Venice. A good place to start the study of Shakespeare. You?ll need Java Script for much of it. For kids 8 and older. |  | http://www.lynchmultimedia.com/index2.html |
 |  | The Art of Taiko |  | A Thinkquest site about the art of Japanese drumming. Includes: the history, making a taiko, playing a taiko. Very nicely done. For kids 8 and older. |  | http://library.thinkquest.org/5997/ |
 |  | Careers |  | Teens. After high school, then what? Choosing a career ? in Art, Dance, Music or Theater |  | http://artswork.asu.edu/arts/students/careers/index.htm |
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| | August 15, 2006 | | Improvisation is one of the greatest clubs a school can have. I have personally experienced this. Two years I started a club at our local middle school and it had over 40 students sign up. What made this experience interesting was the number of boys. I’m sure many middle school directors who are reading this have noticed that their drama clubs are flooded with girls. This had the opposite effect. Ninety-five percent of the middle school improvisation club actors were boys.
After heading the school’s drama club last year, I decided to switch to an improvisation club. The club: “Get in the Act Improvisation,” will focus in on having fun, yet learning unique acting skills. I have decided to limit the number of kids who can join. Working with a large number of children takes away from valuable acting time that the students seek. Thus, the first fifteen students who return their permission slips will get in.
Below are a number of resources that I will use. I urge you to take a look at their descriptions. They are perfect for school improvisation clubs and classroom use. | | |
| | May 08, 2006 | | Playwrights Making Money With Their Published Plays | On May 1st, I signed close to 300 checks. Pioneer Drama Service, Inc. was paying their playwrights their royalties. Checks ranged from only fifty-five cents to over one hundred fifty thousand dollars. When a play is published, many playwrights have dreams of making millions of dollars. However, when writing for the amateur market, it’s difficult to tell what plays are going to be successful. I have been surprised at how well certain shows do. I am equally surprised at how some shows do not bring in any dollars. If you are published, never expect financial success. Be proud you’re your play was chosen out of hundred of submissions to be published. The royalty check is simply the icing on the cake. (Though some icings taste better than others.) | |
| | April 25, 2006 | | A Drama Club Video That Shows Friendship, Community and Creative Growth | | The Newton Middle School Drama Club is through for the year. However, I know many of my kids will go on to a high school and community theatre drama club. These videos tells it all. | | |
| | March 06, 2006 | | Was it successful? | Was it a successful? Did it meet my expectations, the kid’s expectations? Did it meet the parent’s expectations? The one performance of TWINDERELLA took place after a pizza dinner. Each time I have put on a play with the Newton Middle School Drama Club, I always have the “party” before the play. I bring in dinner and allow the kids to unwind and, hopefully, prepare for the show mentally. Things went well at the party. As they munched on cheese pizza, many game impromptu speeches. Many were emotional. Others were silly. Overall, the spirit of the room was proof that 6th, 7th and 8th graders could work together on something special. What about the performance… Well, I’m not sure how to describe it. The show had the spirit that I wanted. However, when they accidentally skipped two scenes, it drove me crazy. I always separate myself from the show and let them go on their own. Although I allowed someone to prompt the actors, she didn’t do a great job. Oh, well. The show went on without the two scenes and ended in applause. After I accepted my gift and thanked the parents, one of the kids yelled, “Let’s do the scenes we missed.” Suddenly, I was watching the middle of a play. I wasn’t sure if I should stop them. In fact, I was wondering if they were going to do the entire show. After a few minutes, I politely stopped them and had happy kids and happy parents go home. Was it a success? As a performance, it will never win any awards. However, it was a project that helped bring community to the school, brought self-confidence to students and it brought the understanding of theatre and putting on a play. | |
| | January 16, 2006 | | It’s fun and exciting… yet often scary! | Directing a play with middle school kids can be a frightening experience. Many teachers often tell me, “I don’t know if the show will go through. I have middle schoolers!” I love directing plays with middle school actors. It’s amazing how they always pull it together in the end. The dress rehearsal may be a disaster, but the production is filled with energy, excitement and everyone shines. Young teens, of course, are interesting. They are in the midst of finding out who they are. Peer pressure is a huge factor. The drama club? It’s always filled with a million girls and three boys. It’s truly a balancing act. In a month or so, Newton Middle School will be producing TWINDERELLA. I’m the director and I’m about to panic. But then I take a step back and realize that every play that I have directed at Newton has been incredible. The kids always come through. | | |
| | January 04, 2006 | | A wonderful year to look back on and a wonderful year to look forward to... | It’s a new year and it’s always a time for me to look back. I want to see where I have helped people put on a play, as well as understanding theater. I have searched and found numerous theatre textbooks and put them in our catalog. I have directed plays at the local middle school. I have taken the time to work with directors and help them find the perfect play for their school or community theatre. It’s been a good year. To all, I wish you a healthy and happy new year on stage and in your life. | |
| | October 27, 2005 | | I am working with a company in the Netherlands to take Pioneer Drama Service Plays to Europe | A number of weeks ago, I was talking with Jack Welch who used to be with Baker's Plays. Jack left Bakers Plays and went on to take his plays to Europe. Jack called me up and said that a man by the name of Pieter Vink of Anco Entertainment B.V. would be calling. Pieter has adapted numerous plays into Dutch. They include THE ODD COUPLE by Neil Simon. He also has adapted Piers Chater Robinson's adaptation of PETER PAN. The excitement at Pioneer Drama Service is that Anco Entertainment is looking to use many of our musicals! Of course, it's not just musicals... it's also full length plays. Our show, LARCENY AND OLD LACE, just came. | | |
| | October 06, 2005 | | This is a fun creation of Pinoccio in a new fashion! | Personally, I’m delighted to see the release of Pioneer’s newest musical, “No Strings Attached” this month. Though Pioneer already carries several different versions of Coloddi’s classic story of “Pinocchio,” this one has a freshness and boldness that makes it very special. Why do we keep going back to the old stories? They tap into something universal, and they ask really important questions, like “What does it mean to be human?” and “How can I be free to be myself, and still fit into a community?” These stories not only grow ON us, they grow IN us. I’m also glad to see Bill Francoeur and Patrick Dorn working together again. It’s been years since they collaborated on “Nutcracker.” They are both professionals in their fields, and they know what it takes to create a show that has a high level of excellence, yet is so well crafted that practically anyone can pick up the script and music CD and stage a quality production that is fun for the cast and entertaining for the audience. I’m sure you’ll agree that “No Strings Attached” stands on its own as a remarkable achievement in teen-oriented musical theater, and a major contribution to the ongoing Pinocchio legacy. And that’s no lie! | |
| | September 19, 2005 | | If you have been wondering where I have been, come and take a look at it. | |
Okay. It’s been a long time since I wrote to you. However,
you have got to see what has been created! We have the best website in the play
publishing and licensing industry. It has taken years of planning, studying
numerous websites, brainstorming and bring in the best technical minds from our
company and a website design company.
The most incredible feature, in my opinion, is the “Search
Engine.” Unlike many of the other Search Engines in the play publishing
industry, it will help you find the right play. After using specific
keywords, it will narrow down the shows, allowing to view specific descriptions.
From these descriptions, you’ll find it simple to pick out specific plays you
are interested in reading. Of course, from there, I know you’ll find a quality
show that will bring a standing ovation to your theatre.
Okay. It’s been a long time since I’ve written to you.
However, I think you’ll find it has been worth it. | | |
| | April 25, 2005 | | Most people in theatre education are beginning to see that classroom drama can start with easy plays and go to the stage | | I am currently directing a main-stage play at my kids' middle
school. The play is a one act stageplay that is not only great for child
audiences, but family audiences, as well. I have found that the simple
stageplay, Wooing Wed Widing Hood, not only makes an excellent school play but a
play for our community. It is an excellent fund raising source because it has a
lot of cast members and a lot of appeal to the community. The play, which
started as a classroom theatre playscript, became a show that has been dozens of
times. I suggest you check it out. I have! | | |
| | March 03, 2005 | | What does a teacher need to do to work with a grant given to her to have students write a play? | Today I spoke with a teacher from Texas. She wanted to know where the best resources were for writing melodramas. Though I have to admit I would be the best resource, I pointed to many that our company has. One is BETWEEN HISSES-THE BOOK and BEYOND THE BOOS AND HISSES, a video. These are excellent resources. I have written a number of melodramas and I always like to look at some of the best as models. Melodramas by Billy St. John, Rachel Davidson and, of course, my father, are terrific. In fact, she had said that they were looking closely at RUN TO THE ROUNDHOUSE, NELLIE as a great model. Made me feel great since my father wrote that many years ago. wahad | | |
| | December 17, 2004 | | Newton Middle Drama Club pulls it together to make it a grand evening. | | Middle school kids are amazing. I have to admit, I wasn't sure if the show would
pull itself together. The melodrama went great. The audience loved it and the
kids loved it. I have to say that I wasn't sure if they would even pull it off.
With a large cast production, many kids are often not able to come to rehearsals
because of illness. This group only met once a week. With only 8 rehearsals and
20 kids, we often did not even have a full cast at the production. Finally, on
the day of the production, I stuffed the kids full of pizza and had a rehearsal.
Then 30 minutes later, they went and had a great time. The big question is what
show will we do in March? With our company's biggest month coming up (January),
I'll worry about that one later. | | |
| | November 15, 2004 | | An asset: STAGING MUSICALS FOR YOUNG PERFORMERS by Maria C. Novelly and Adele Firth | Even though I am not putting on a melodrama, I am staging a show for young performers. I have found that utilizing STAGING MUSICALS FOR YOUNG PERFORMERS is an excellent asset. This book will begin to be offered by Pioneer Drama Service in January of 2005. The book is a step-by-step guidebook for producing a successful show with young performers. I love it because it discusses theatrical basics, casting and rehearsals, costumes and makeup, scenery and props, stage lighting and sound effects as well as publicity and promotion. It truly is to me an invaluable guide for teaching acting. So as December 7th creeps up on me, I am armed with my script, list of actors and director's book. | |
| | November 11, 2004 | | Will the middle school drama school kids pull the play together? | |
It's an amazing thing about middle school kids. I've watched them do drama
for years and I think I got 'em figured out. In fact, now that I have two middle
school kids, I really do think I have them figured out. You see, when a
production nears, it's not unusual for the young actors to not have lines
memorized, be jumping off the walls.... In fact, nothing comes together until
the day of the production. However, since I am only seeing the kids once each
week, it's very difficult to pull this thing together. It's a rough one. When
you have a cast size of 20, when one kid is out of school due to illness, that's
it. However, I'm preparing myself. I know that we may end up doing a number of
things.
1. We may have to work with someone on the side to prompt kids with lines. I
basically can't stand it but I'll do it.
2. Have some kids use their scripts.
3. Cancel the gig. No way! Too much work!
4. It will pull together.
I really do think having a drama club that meets only one each week does not
work. I see a need to do it for two nights each week, using the additional days
for drama activities and/or rehearsal. Just have to see how things work out next
spring. | | |
| | October 29, 2004 | | Starting a new drama program at Newton Middle School in Littleton, Colorado | |
It's been a few days... maybe even weeks... since I kept you informed about
my volunteer work at Newton Middle School. I decided that the school needed a
drama program. Because of a lack of funding in our Littleton School District in
the performing arts, a drama club disappeared from Newton. I felt that it was
important to me and important to the school that I generate interest. After
putting out an announcement and with the help of Debbie Getzel, the Gifted and
Talented teacher at the school, we attracted close to 30 kids. Of course, some
of them dropped out. That comes with the shifting of middle school
interests. It was no surprise to me that the majority of the kids in the club
happened to be girls. That's no surprise. It's quite normal for a drama club to
have more girls than boys. In fact, most of our plays in Pioneer Drama Service
have more female roles than males. However, many of the parts are flexible.
The most difficult aspect of the club is the limitation of time. This is
because the club can only meet once each week and can only meet for an hour. To
work with this I chose a large cast melodrama that was 30 minutes long. The show
is THE PAPER BAG BANDIT, a melodrama by Tim Kelly. Tim was a genious when he was
writing plays. When I asked him to write a 30 minute play with a lot of
characters, Tim came out with this melodrama and RASCALS UNDER THE BIG TOP.
I have started rehearsals and they are going fairly well, though some of the
kids have not started to memorize lines. A lot of this is because I didn't put
out a decent schedule. I'm going to pull out a number of our play directing
textbooks and will work on being more organized. (I've listed a number of the
books below.)
I wasn't surprised at the high energy the kids have. However, it's working to
control the after-school energy and get the kids in the same track for an hour.
Things seem to be shaping up. To add to this, I started an olio group as well.
This group meets on Tuesday. They are taking short comedy skits and a large
variety of jokes for blackout purposes and making it into a nice selection of
olios. Want to know what an olio is? Or facts about melodrama. I also have links
to other sources. | | |
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