And you thought PG-rated movies were too dark for your kids...

[sarahsthreads]

How would you try to summarize Jekyll & Hyde (the musical) in basic, basic terms to an 8 year old and a 4 year old?

I'm thinking ahead to potentially accompanying the spring musical and wondering how to help my kids deal with the relatively dark, not particularly family-friendly nature of it. I can't afford to hire a babysitter to keep them for every rehearsal, they don't pay me that much! The girls come and sit and play with various toys, use iPods or read. But just to give you an idea, they've absorbed every word of every song in Wizard of Oz, which we're rehearsing right now. (Seriously, DD2 puts consonants on the ends of all her words when she starts singing Munchkinland in the car because she's overheard the vocal director stressing that to the cast. She could totally be a munchkin in the show.)

*Most* of the music is actually fine, though there are a couple of really violent & disturbing songs. I'm assuming it will help them to see regular old high school kids (most of whom they know from previous shows) singing them. I won't have a script for a while, and haven't seen the show (though I know the plot) so I don't know how frightening any dialog might be. I do know that they are planning to tone down the adult themes and violence to some degree as it is only a high school production, but are also planning to warn people in the advertising that it is not appropriate for younger children.

By the time we're in full costume/lighting/scenery mode - so, when it would be the most realistic - we'll have switched to later evening rehearsals instead of right after school and my kids wouldn't be there.

So, be honest. Would you bring them? Tell the school they need to find a different accompanist for this one (I'd really prefer not to do this)? How do I make this work?

Thanks!
Sarah :)

[sarahsthreads]

Bump? Would love some advice! :)

[wellyes]

What is the level of violence in the show?

[ljackson]

No idea about the show, but a couple of other thoughts. Would it be possible to have them watching something on a laptop with headphones on when the most scary songs are on? You could either set it up as just a special treat or be up-front and tell them that the show content is too old for them and they need to do something else. Also, instead of telling the school that they need to find someone else instead could you share your dilemma with them and see if they can help you find a solution?

[sarahsthreads]

Well, I'm pretty sure the murder count is something like 5. Plus Jekyll/Hyde kills himself at the end. Here's the synopsis (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jekyll_%26_Hyde_(musical)) from wikipedia.

I mean, there's violence in a lot of musicals (DD1 was along for West Side Story, but was only 2 at the time and I think most of it went way over her head) but this one is the darkest one yet.

Sarah :)

[sarahsthreads]

No idea about the show, but a couple of other thoughts. Would it be possible to have them watching something on a laptop with headphones on when the most scary songs are on? You could either set it up as just a special treat or be up-front and tell them that the show content is too old for them and they need to do something else. Also, instead of telling the school that they need to find someone else instead could you share your dilemma with them and see if they can help you find a solution?

Actually, the laptop/headphones idea may work. I was considering getting DD1 a Kindle Fire for Christmas, and DD2 could potentially watch kid-friendlier movies on my laptop. I'm definitely planning on being up front with the kids, but I still wanted to try to give them an idea of what the show is about.

Good point about seeing if the director/school staff have any ideas. Unfortunately, my go-to teenage babysitter is likely to be in it - I discovered her at last year's musical. ;)

Sarah :)

[ha98ed14]

I'd just get a sitter for the nights you are working on those pieces.

[newnana]

Love the headphones/laptop idea.

Are all the kids in all the scenes? Our stage was right in the middle of a bunch of classrooms. I could see having a teenager that I trust that is also in the show but not all the scenes take the girls into a classroom for those particular scene practices. You could even pay him/her a little, but it would be less than paying for the full rehearsal time. Have a fun activity for the kiddos so they think of it as special extra time with one of the kids. I know at that age I loved big kid attention and DD does, too. That's how they corrall the little ones backstage at our dance recitals. The older dancers entertain the younger ones when they are not on stage. The girls enjoy that more than the recital because they otherwise never interract with them.

[ahisma]

You know, it could be a good thing. If they are already very familiar with theater and what goes on in a production it may not phase them much, they'll realize that it's all acting.

I don't know, but it's an angle worth considering.

[ezcc]

Well, I haven't seen the musical so can't say for sure but I probably wouldn't worry about this too much. I honestly don't shield my kids that much from violent stuff though- they saw Star Wars etc at pretty young ages. I worry about them seeing too much sex/language but dark themes are in every fairy tale for a reason- kids are exploring this stuff in their minds from a very young age.

[misshollygolightly]

I've seen the musical and I think the full-on lights/makeup/costume rehearsals would definitely be too much, but I don't think I'd be particularly worried about the earlier, more casual practices. There will likely be a LOT of stopping, starting, repeating, breaking character, giggling, etc. for the initial practices...I don't think it should be too disconcerting for them as they're somewhat used to the process of theater. I like the idea of having a movie w/ headphones and/or other activities/distractions for them (coloring pages, books, dolls, snacks).

If possible, maybe you could introduce them to all of the main actors and actresses ahead of time (not in costume)...if they get to know "Hyde" as a friendly high schooler, I think they'll be less likely to be afraid later on.

I do think you'll need to give them a sanitized synopsis of the plotline ahead of time...you could maybe even warn them about some of the things you think might be scary. But emphasize that it's just a story, just acting, not real, etc.

[sarahsthreads]

I've seen the musical and I think the full-on lights/makeup/costume rehearsals would definitely be too much, but I don't think I'd be particularly worried about the earlier, more casual practices. There will likely be a LOT of stopping, starting, repeating, breaking character, giggling, etc. for the initial practices...I don't think it should be too disconcerting for them as they're somewhat used to the process of theater.

Thank you all for your ideas - this is especially helpful, having not seen it myself! I do bring (and have to pick up at the end) lots of distractions anyway, but I'd never thought to bring anything with headphones (to be fair, DD2 probably wasn't really old enough for that until this time around anyway.)

As far as getting a sitter for when we're working on particularly dark pieces, my schedule is never that specific. I'm just there for whatever rehearsals they schedule me for, and I play whatever the director decides we're working on that day! I have to admit I'm hoping (for my sake, not hers) that my regular babysitter gets a minor role and can engage the girls when she's not on stage.

Sarah :)