Learning Objectives 

Students will: 

• Gain insight into ways a musical can be unified into a cohesive production.
• Recognize the potential of literary sources and/or historical events as inspiration for musicals.
• Recognize aspects of the identification between themes and forms of musicals and the cultural climate of a time period.
• Exercise collaborative problem-solving techniques.
• Broaden research experience in diverse media.
• Strengthen process skills of reading, writing, explicating.

Standards Alignment

National Core Arts StandardsNational Core Arts Standards

Common Core State StandardsCommon Core State Standards

Recommended Student Materials

Editable Documents: Before sharing these resources with students, you must first save them to your Google account by opening them, and selecting “Make a copy” from the File menu. Check out Sharing Tips or Instructional Benefits when implementing Google Docs and Google Slides with students.

• Vocabulary: Adapting a Musical
• Teacher’s Guide: Adapting a Musical
• Developing a Musical
• Creative Team Responsibilities

Websites

• Musical Theater in America, Putting it Together: Words & Music
• Page to Stage: The Making of Elephant and Piggie’s We Are in a Play
• Page to Stage: The Making of Knuffle Bunny
• Page to Stage: The Making of Nobody’s Perfect
• The Dramatic Function of Songs in Musical Theater
• What I Do Series
• What I Do: Scenic Design with Deb Sivigny
• Ruth E. Carter’s Threads Of History
• The Costume Designer for Black Panther and Spike Lee Explains Her Creative Process
• Celia Ledón: Costume Designer

Teacher Background

Teachers should be familiar with the plots of the various novels covered in class to date. Teachers should be familiar with musicals or use the Musical Theater Collection to build background knowledge prior to teaching the lesson.

Student Prerequisites 

Familiarity with the plots of the two or three novels covered in English or History class to date. Students should also be familiar with the concept of musical theater.

Accessibility Notes

Modify handouts, text, and utilize assistive technologies as needed. Allow extra time for task completion.

Engage

1. Introduce students to musical theater. Share the article Musical Theater in America, Putting it Together: Words & Music, a multi-part audio series by Heather Nathans, an Associate Professor of Theatre at the University of Maryland. Have students explore elements of musical theater. Ask students: What is musical theater? What are the characteristics of a musical? How do musicals differ from other forms of storytelling? What is the source material of a musical? Have students share examples of musicals.

2. Distribute the handout, Vocabulary: Adapting a Musical. Review and discuss the vocabulary with students. Have them connect a vocabulary word with a literary example. 

3. Discuss influential musical theater works. For example, Rodgers and Hammerstein (“South Pacific,” “Cinderella,” “The King and I”), Lin Manuel Miranda (“Hamilton”), Stephen Sondheim (“Into the Woods,” “Sweeney Todd”), Andrew Lloyd Webber (“Cats,” “Phantom of the Opera,” “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat”), Jeanine Tesori (“Fun Home”) Stephen Flaherty and Lynn Ahrens (“Ragtime,” “Once on This Island”), Anaïs Mitchell (“Hadestown”), Charlie Smalls (“The Wiz”), Alain Boublil & Claude-Michel Schönberg (“Les Miserables”), Stephen Schwartz (“Wicked”), Tim Minchin (“Matilda the Musical”), Roger Miller (“Big River”), Lerner and Loewe's (“My Fair Lady”), Joe Iconis (“Be More Chill”), and Brenda Russell, Allee Willis, and Stephen Bray (“The Color Purple”).

4. Tell students that the source material for musicals varies. Musicals can be adapted straight from a literary source (“Les Miserables”), some make adjustments to original literary works to reach a wider audience (“Wicked”), many use short stories (“Hadestown”), and others draw inspiration from a play or opera (“Rent”). 

5. Tell students they are going to imagine that Broadway producers contacted them to create a musical from literature, a play, or a short story. Students will work collaboratively as a creative team and take on real-life roles to bring the musical to life.

Build

1. Refer to the Teacher’s Guide: Adapting a Musical to select a play and/or novel, or a collection of short stories that have a homogenous thread, to use as a source for this assignment.

2. Have students assess the dramatic qualities of various texts and the process of adapting a story to the stage. Allow time for students to explore the following resources: 

Page to Stage: The Making of Elephant and Piggie’s We Are in a Play

Page to Stage: The Making of Knuffle Bunny

Page to Stage: The Making of Nobody’s Perfect

The Dramatic Function of Songs in Musical Theater

What I Do: Scenic Design with Deb Sivigny

Ruth E. Carter’s Threads Of History

The Costume Designer for Black Panther and Spike Lee Explains Her Creative Process

Celia Ledón: Costume Designer

3. Divide the class into pairs. Provide a list of texts that the students are studying in their literature or history classes, or brainstorm a list of texts with the class. Ask each pair to assess what various aspects of the text would require in terms of staging, props, etc., and negotiate specific responses to the questions in the accompanying Developing a Musical handout.

4. Have students discuss their findings with the class, paying attention to specific opportunities and challenges that they identified in potential adaptations.

5. After the discussion, ask the class to vote on which text they would like to turn into a musical. Have students consider the following questions as they narrow their choices: Why does this text lend itself to a musical better than a movie, comic book, show, etc? What is it that telling this particular story with music can do versus other art forms? What is the spirit of the story you are adapting to? Does the story need to have contemporary edits? Once the text has been selected, narrow down a chapter or two to focus on. Have students explore the rising action (conflict/struggle) or a turning point in a chapter. Allow time for students to develop the musical adaptation based on the selected portions of the text.

Apply

1. Distribute the handout, Creative Team Responsibilities. Divide the class into the following groups based on student’s skills and interests: scriptwriters, songwriters, set designers, and costume designers. Review the roles and responsibilities of each creative team member. Encourage students to explore the behind-the-scenes series, “What I Do”, to learn how artists make decisions about what audiences see and hear on stage. Explain to students that each team will need to collaborate to ensure common themes are present in the final product. 

2. Allow each group time to work on developing their aspect of the musical. Provide groups with materials and devices so that they can type their scripts, lyrics, use digital tools for design, and access the web for research.

3. If you choose to perform the musical, you will then need to also assign students to the following roles: actors, singers, musicians, stage crew, and directors. 

Reflect 

1. Have students pitch their musical adaptation to the class like they are in front of Broadway producers. Encourage students to offer feedback and comments. Pay particular attention to the way the original text is used, and how the components (setting, script, song, dance, etc.) of the design are integrated.

2. Have students perform the musical or selected scenes.

3. Assess students' knowledge of adapting musicals. Ask each student to reflect on the process in writing. Display the following writing prompt: When adapting a text for a musical, what is most difficult? In what ways is a musical adaptation of a text more effective in conveying themes, events, or emotions? Are there certain aspects of literature that cannot be conveyed in a musical? If so, explain.

Extend

1. Have students consider a major historical event as the central inspiration for a musical. “Hamilton,” “Six,” “1776,” “Allegiance,” “Come from Away,” and “Evita” are examples of musical works that fit into this category. Ask students to prepare a list of specific occurrences recorded in history that are related to the chosen event. 

2. Divide the class into pairs. Ask each pair to construct a structural design for a musical, create performance segments, and write song lyrics dedicated to some aspect of one of the occurrences.