How to Direct a Musical

Contents

• Part I : Before Rehersals Begin:
• 1. The Guide;
• 2. The Diary;
• 3. Director's Book;
• 4. Plot of the Musical Fanny;
• 5. Checklist of Important Points in Each Musical Production;
• 6. Script Analysis;
• 7. Setting the Style of Your Musical - Exploring the Musicals of the 1980s and 1990s;
• 8. First Exercise;
• 9. Collaborating with Designers, Crew, and Staff (first production meeting);
• 10. Specifics: costumes and wigs, sets (design and sketches), makeup, sound and lights, props and set dressing, stage manager, production book, rehearsal pianist;
• 11. Musical Director and Choreographer;
• 12. The Director Who Stages His/Her Own Dances;
• 13. For the Director Who Has Never Staged a Dance Number;
• Part II : Auditions and Casting:
• 14. Sample Notice;
• 15. Early Challenges;
• Part III : The Beginning - First Rehearsals:
• 16. Rehearsal Schedule;
• 17. Sample Autobiographies;
• 18. Blocking (samples to use);
• 19. Staging the Musical Numbers (Diagrams Included);
• 20. Comparison of Similarities in Musical Numbers;
• 21. Putting Together a Multicultural Musical Revue;
• Part IV : Working With Singer/Dancers on Acting - The Early Stages:
• 22. Where Are We?;
• 23. Listening: a Most Important Tool;
• 24. Characterization;
• 25. Think Time for the Director;
• 26. Improvisation Theatre Games - To Help Strengthen and Enliven Rehearsals as the Pressure Begins;
• Part V : Specific Challenges - Midway:
• 27. Pulling the Musical Numbers Together;
• 28. Talking about Comedy;
• 29. Farce - A Special Kind of Comedy;
• 30. Stage Fights - How We Did Them!;
• 31. Accents;
• 32. Helping Singers to Age Realistically;
• 33. Aging Americans and the Theatre;
• 34. More Production Meetings;
• 35. Microphones;
• 36. Orchestra Rehearsals;
• 37. Update and Relaxers;
• 38. Run Through;
• Part VI : Pacing, Blending, Streamlining:
• 39. Pauses, How to Eliminate the Unwanted Ones;
• 40. Special Rehearsal;
• 41. Sorting Out;
• 42. Plugging Along - Then Disaster;
• 43. Concentration - The Dustin Hoffman Story;
• 44. Videotaping could Help;
• 45. Publicity and
• Photographs - Necessary Interruptions;
• Part VII : Ontage - Finally:
• 46. Lights/Sound, Dry Tech;
• 47. Rehearsals with Sets, Costumes, and Tech;
• 48. More Observations;
• 49. Some Breakthroughs;
• 50. Fine-Tuning the Songs;
• 51. Last Dress Rehearsals - Progress;
• 52. Staging the Curtain Calls;
• 53. Preview;
• 54. Opening Night;
• 55. Evaluation;
• Part VIII :
• Appendices
• 56. Understanding and Directing Young People and Teens;
• 57. Concerning Special Talents, or Whose Disability is it Anyway?;
• 58. How to Stage Musical Numbers;
• 59. The Choreographer/Director;
• 60. Computers for the Musical Theatre.