NOTICE: This is an older course recorded with Adobe Connect and/or Vimeo recordings. We are currently working to replace the recordings with new Zoom recordings. Please don't hesitate to email us at homeschoolconnections@gmail.
Dear Student,
This course is scheduled to be retired on Nov. 30, 2024. You may continue to work on this course until then. We are not replacing this course at this time. Please browse this subject to find other comparable courses. Please check out the Live courses that are similar here: https://caravel.homeschoolconnections.com/catalog/
How to get the most out of A History of Musical Theater with Kevin O'Brien:
- First, read the course details below.
- Prepare a notebook for note taking and homework.
- Students begin the course by clicking on the "Recording" and watching the instructor's lecture for Class One.
- Complete the Week One Activities.
- If you need review, go back and watch the recording again and/or go over the Powerpoint.
- Repeat until all classes are complete. Parents can grade any essay questions, or they may purchase Instructor Access for Kevin O'Brien to grade the essay questions.
- Once the course is completed to the parent's satisfaction, there is a Certificate of Completion at the end to be filled in for your records. Homeschool Connections does not provide record keeping.
Total Classes: 13
Duration: 55 minutes
Prerequisite: None
Suggested Grade Level: 7th to 12th grade
Suggested High School Credit: 1 full semester Drama or Music History
Instructor: Kevin O’Brien
Instructor Email: kevin@classeswithkevin.
Course Description: Musical theater! Is anything more fun?! This class will look at the history of musicals, from their origins in comedies and light opera all the way to modern musicals like Hamilton. We will compare musicals to other forms of drama, look at the basic structures of the stories and songs in musicals, determine what makes some musicals better than others, and also look at scenes from the most famous movie musicals. For a Final Project, each student will create an outline of a musical they’d like to write.
Course Outline:
- Origins of Musicals - The Beggar’s Opera, pantomime, commedia
- Light Opera - Gilbert & Sullivan
- Revues and Vaudeville vs. Musicals
- Early American Musicals - George M. Cohan, Irving Berlin, and the Princess Theater Musicals
- Of Thee I Sing and Pre-Golden Age Musicals
- The Golden Age Begins Showboat and Oklahoma!
- Rodgers and Hammerstein
- Lerner & Lowe
- Dance and Musicals: Jerome Robbins and Bob Fosse and Dancers on Film
- Social Themes in Musicals: Fiddler on the Roof, West Side Story, etc.
- Rock and Rap Musicals: Godspell, Hamilton, etc.
- Show Biz Musicals: The Producers, Something Rotten, etc.
- Review and Conclusion
Course Materials: Musicals: The Definitive Illustrated Story by DK Publishing, plus video clips, audio clips and PDF’s provided by the instructor when able. Students may have to purchase or rent some musicals if they cannot find them available for free, but most are available to rent for around $2.99. Links will be provided each week with more information.
Homework: Assignments and readings. Expect to average two hours per week on homework outside of the classroom.
- Teacher: Kevin OBrien