ìIs There Life After High School?î

A Practical Approach to Possibilities

In The Technical Arts Field

Producing Theater (Senior Technical students) is offered for the first time this year at LaGuardia High School For the Performing Arts. This practical course focuses on building a career. Students set goals, assess their current skills and develop new practical skills in order to find work or internships in the entertainment field. Students are introduced to working budgets, job descriptions, and job opportunities for Broadway and off-Broadway shows, film production and television series. Guest artists first semester include James Hirsch, executive producer of the current HBO series ROME, Chase Mishkin, Tony award winning Broadway producer, Paul Gallo, Broadway lighting designer, and Susie Cordon, Broadway stage manager. The students will create an individual portfolio filled with the their personal and professional ambitions, a plan to achieve those goals, a formal resume, a letter and follow-up letter expressing interest in an internship, a list of valuable resources, and a list of job opportunities that the students tracked down on their own. They are also to feature several examples of work in their field that they are proud of. The portfolio is meant to be a work in progress that can be updated, rewritten and ultimately presented to an interviewer.

Producing: Blueprint For the Arts, Benchmark 12

ìExploring Careers and Lifelong Learningî

∑ Students identify potential career paths through an exploration of the careers in theater, associated industries and professional unions and guilds.

∑ Students become self-guided pre-professionals by identifying

theater internships, college and conservatory programs.

New York State Theater Standard 2- Knowing and Using Art Materials

∑Students will locate and use school, community, and professional resources for theater experiences.

∑Students will understand the job opportunities available in all aspects of theater.

Lesson #1 (of the three month unit)

ìWho Wants To Be A Millionaire?î

Finding Out What Do They Know?

Goal/Objective:

• To assess what the students already know about job possibilities in the production of theater
• To make the students aware of the countless job possibilities in the production of an off-Broadway musical
• To assess how successfully this class works together in cooperative groups
• To establish a sense of fun, curiosity, and reflection
• To establish who I am and what this course will offer them
• To find out whom they are and what they are interested in.

Assessment:

• Students will hand in their project, budget, and jobs required to implement their production during class.
• Students will compare and contrast what their budget states and what an actual off- Broadway budget states. What jobs did they not think of? How many jobs were there?
• The teacher will closely observe the cooperative groups at work and their final work to assess the possibilities, adjustments, or modifications needed for future group work.
• The teacher will closely watch for activity, involvement and commitment to the project. Did they enjoy it and seem engaged?
• The teacher will hand out large, yellow index cards to each student. They are to write their names, their major and a brief description of their strengths and weaknesses in that area. They are then to describe what they learned (if anything) during class today. Those cards are then handed back to the teacher at the end of the class to read.
• Homework: ìReflection and Research.î Students will be asked each week a question to reflect on and an occupation to research. They are to type these ideas and hand them in. This week the questions are:

a. Reflection: ìDo you want a job or a career?î

What is the difference? Is there one?

b. Research: What is a ìBest Boy?î

For New York State Learning Standards and Strands: see page one

Audience/Developmental Considerations:

As stated on page one, this class is being offered for the first time to seniors majoring in technical theater at a professional, public high school for performing arts in New York City. It will meet once a week for 45 minutes. The students had to audition their work and interview with the department chair in order to be accepted into this school. It is made up of equal parts of females and males, but predominately white inner city students. The school has recently been given a substantial grant to help support this department.

I have been given friendly advice by the chairs of the department that the technical students are a ìdisgruntled group.î The POTS, or Parents Of Tech Students, have formed a group and have requested meetings with the department chairs and principal. Parents and students alike are unhappy with some of the classes of the previous two years.

Modifications:

• Because of the climate at the school, I decided to forgo all my usual ìPass the Nerf Ballî warm up exercises such as ìWhere are You From?î or ìName Games.î I wanted to get right to work, focusing on purpose and overview of the semester.

• These are not actors. I feel that most of my classroom activities will not work here. The students seem distant and not at all outgoing (like my drama students.) I need to allow more time for the writing of the index cards, ask more questions, and read their cards carefully for clues, insights, and ideas.

• Because of the climate of unrest and the different sensibilities,

I need to rethink how I present myself. I have developed a professional but eccentric persona in my drama classes. That will not work here. I need to present a more serious, take-charge professional aura in this classroom.

• Due to the ennui and dissatisfaction factor, I decide to start big. I decide not to have a roll call. I will mark attendance off of the yellow cards. I will also have the students announce their names as they present their ideas.

• I need to watch all the students carefully during the group work.

Do any seem to have physical handicaps or obvious learning problems? Are there any bullies? Are all the students working?

Previous Knowledge:

The students are all seniors in a professional technical department, but I have no idea what the students actually know or donít know about the jobs available to them when producing a show. The main activity for this first lesson is to find that out. I know some students will be attending college next year and some will not.

Organization:

The class needs to be able to form groups of three. If desks canít be moved, the class can sit on the floor. However, there needs to enough room so the groups are not on top of each other. You do not want the different groups listening to each otherís ideas until the end of the class.

Materials: for 21 students

• 7 blank checks for a million dollars, made to look obviously fake

• 21 copies of a real budget for an off-Broadway musical.

(Numerous operating budgets can be found in

ìProducing Theaterî by Donald Faber.)

• 21 sheets of blank paper.

• 21 large yellow index cards

• If possible, 7 large poster boards and baskets of different colored markers. These are not necessary, but they make the project more fun.

Procedures: 45-minute class

Warm –up/ Hook 3 minutes total

∑ Brief introduction: Name and ìI produce theater.î

∑ As a producer, people expect you to write checks.

∑ ìSo, who wants to be a millionaire?î (get a show of hands.)

∑ ìIf the class can quickly and quietly divide into groups of three, I will write each group a check for a million dollars.î

∑ Hand out checks to each group as they finish and settle

Main activity: 25 minutes total

1. Produce me a show

o What is missing from that check? (My signature)

o ìIf you want me to write my name on the bottom of that check, you need to prove to me you can handle a show. You need to produce for me a sensible budget for your very own off-Broadway show.

o I know nothing about your show. All I know is that it is a musical with a cast of six and a band of three.

I know I own a 499 seat theater off-Broadway.

o I donít know the name of your show or what itís about. You must come up with a name and the concept.

o You must put the talent together for this musical. Who are you going to hire? Who do you need?

o Where is it important to spend some money? Where will you save?

o The budget is to run through three weeks of previews and one week after opening night.

2. Groups work together for 10 minutes to create a musical, devise a budget, and think about the many jobs that are needed that they will have to pay for.

• Students will say they have no idea how to create a budget. That is correct. They are to imagine and guess.

• If possible, students are given magic markers and large poster boards on which to compile all of their ideas.

3. Students share their musicals for 15 minutes.
• 7 groups for approximately 2 minutes each.

Reflection/Debrief/Assessment: 17 minutes

2. Real budgets are handed out.

3. Students are asked to raise their hands and mention what they notice is the main difference from their budget and the real one? (Listen forÖ. ìI had no idea there were so many people involved. Emphasize that question.)

4. Then ask the students what else is different? What jobs did they forget? Leading questions can be as follows:

Did anyone rememberÖ

a. not just the orchestrations but the hiring of copyists?

b. the advertising agency?

c. the people involved with the preproduction workshop?

d. the transportation of sets?

e. to add more stage managers? Why do you think there are more stage managers on a musical than a play?

f. to distinguish who works for the theater and who works for the producers? Are they the same or different? For instance, who pays the house electrician?

g. the photographer for the cast photos?

5. Announce you will be bringing in working professionals in film, stage and television to illuminate the numerous jobs available to them. They will also offer advice as to how to go about getting those jobs. These people (or people they know) could also make available potential internships, which would allow the students to see if they are interested their field.

6. Hand out large yellow index cards. 5 minutes (of the 17)

a. Explain they will be used for us to ìtalk to each otherî because the class is so short and it only meets once a week. They will hand them in at the end of every class.

b. Cards will also be used to take attendance.

c. Write your name, your major, what you consider your strengths and weaknesses in that area, and what you learned today. Students hand the cards in.

7. HOMEWORK: For next week ìReflection and Researchî

Bring to class one typed page, double-spaced, on

a. Reflection: ìDo you want a job or a career?î

What is the difference? Is there one?

How might this class help you?

b. Research: What is a ìBest Boy?î

Teacher Assessment:

o Did the students seem engaged?

o Were the students able to work together cooperativelyî

o Were the students able to work together effectively?

o Did any students seem to have any obvious physical handicaps or obvious learning problems? Do I need to modify future activities in any way?

o Were there any bullies?

o Did the students take you and the class seriously? If not, where did I lose them?

o Did they learn anything? What do the yellow cards say?

o Do they take the ìreflection and researchî papers seriously?