Age Group: High-school and up
Materials: writing materials, basic music understanding
This is a relatively advanced presentation on two aspects of music for musical theater: establishing the world of the story, and transitions between scenes. Examples from popular musical theater are used to demonstrate concepts. One can perform the assignments without actually composing music, as they mostly consist of imagining and describing the music and the story. This can be very useful for someone with ambitions in composing music for theater, and also just for observing how these techniques are used in musical theater performances.
Joel Paszkowski wrote his first musical as his final project in college, producing, directing, and performing it, as well. Joel has gone on to write several more works of musical theater, exploring various aspects of the art form. He is eager to share what he as learned, whether you are interested in writing music or just gaining greater appreciation of your favorite musicals.