September - November

We want to hear from students, parents, and audience members about what they want to see in the next year. Most of the time, we don't get specific titles, but people will ask for "a comedy" or "a Shakespeare." If that happens, the leadership team will look at the body of theatre work for things at match the requests. (WE REALLY LOVE TO GET TITLE-SPECIFIC RECOMMENDATIONS)

What We Look for in a Show:

• Cast size: plays need at least 15 speaking roles - we are more flexible on musicals (all shows MUST HAVE non-speaking roles/ensemble)

• Lots of parts for females

• Less than 5 required male roles (we are not blessed with a lot of male actors)

• Realistic set expectations

• Family-friendly

November-December

Once we have a list of shows we think might work, we order samples of those scripts. It is important to note that it is $8-$10 per sample, so we are limited in the number that can make it to this stage. We then do a deep review of the sample to make sure that the script meets the needs of the program.

Main Reasons a Show Won't Move on in the Process:

• The show isn't as family-friendly as the description led us to believe

• We took a chance on a lesser-known script... and it just isn't good

• Another theater group in the area has already claimed the show or did it too recently

December

With the samples that make it past review, we make a list in order of the titles we wish to use for the year. Most of the time, we do get our first choice on this list in the end... but it is important to have some backups as the process isn't over.

January-February

Since we are a school, it is important that our school leadership is in the know about our show plans. We let everyone involved read the whole show and address any concerns that come up. We can reorder our preference list or take a title off the list at this point.

March

We REQUEST the license for the shows we want from the rights holders. The key word being... request. There are several reasons the rights holder might deny a request. If this happens, we have to move down the preference list. This process also takes a LONG time depending on who the rights holder is.

Only once the contracts are signed with the rights holders and all payments for royalties are submitted can we tell ANYONE outside of the leadership teams what the season is. We like to let the kids know what the shows are in a fun way!