Through a formal score selection process, a panel of adjudicators will select the best pieces among the four participating schools for the finale concert to be held at a public performing venue so that students will share the results of their training with members of the public.

Musical Theatre is a form of theatre combining music, songs, spoken dialogue and dance. Also known as “musicals”, they are performed all around the world in different venues, from Broadway and West End theatres, on international tours, to local community theatres and schools. This popular art form is both entertaining and artistically challenging.

“Into the Musical Jungle” is a comprehensive musical theatre education project for primary and secondary schools. On completion of the yearlong training, The Jungle Book, Romeo and Harriet, “Musical Farm” will be produced and performed by students through the collaboration among schools and theatres professionals.

1. Musical Theatre Programme

The Jungle Book (for primary schools with some musical theatre production experience)
You are invited to come along on an extraordinary musical adventure with Mowgli, a boy raised by wolves in the jungle. With the help of his friends — the bear Baloo, the panther Bagheera and the python Kaa — Mowgli is learning to survive as they teach him about “Jungle Law”. Does anyone know what will happen when Mowgli encounters the hooded cobra who guards the treasure vault It’s always difficult to judge hilarious coconut-tossing monkeys, especially when they take our hero prisoner. But the jungle is also the home of Shere Khan, the dangerous man-eating tiger who has vowed to destroy Mowgli. This faithful adaptation from the storybook of Rudyard Kipling with five delightful musical treats is extremely suitable for primary school students to rehearse and produce.

Romeo and Harriet (for Secondary schools with some musical theatre production experience)
This hilarious musical spoof puts the “shake” in Shakespeare! The show with laughter galore so actors and audience alike won’t even realize they’re learning about Shakespeare! The stage is set in a modern-day city, where clerks of the swanky Montague’s Department store and the second-rate Capulet’s Discount Mart meet in the street to trade insults. Naturally, the heirs to these two retail empires, Romeo and Harriet, fall in love, but don’t think you know the rest, this musical has a happy ending! It’s pure comedy with pie fights in place of duels, a nurse obsessed with paper cuts, Romeo dressed in a white leisure suit à la John Travolta and an outrageous parody of the most romantic scene in literature. A fun, eclectic collection of musical numbers underscores all this hilarity. It would be a real tragedy to miss out on this one!

2. Song & Dance Programme

Musical Farm (for primary and secondary schools with no/less musical theatre production experience)
Musical Farm is a mini-musical comprised of a series non-stop song-and-dance numbers, all featuring different kinds of animals and pets, from award-winning Broadway and movie musicals. The programme will be educational and entertaining to showcase the influence of musical theatre in the world of arts. Suitable for primary and secondary school students, it takes the performers and audiences a tour with a variety of music and dance styles of many Broadway musicals.

Performers from the two selected primary schools will be performing songs from musicals such as The Lion King, Alice in Wonderland, The Wizard of Oz, 101 Dalmatians and Seussical.

Performers from the selected secondary school will be performing songs from musicals such as Cats, The Wiz, Shrek and Into the Woods.

Participating Schools (in alphabetical order)
Chiu Sheung School, Hong Kong
Fukien Secondary School Affiliated School
Newman Catholic College
PLK Wong Wing Shu Primary School
SKH Lam Kau Mow Secondary School
SKH St. James’ Primary School
STFA Cheng Yu Tung Secondary School

Dance has no physical limitation. It is a first step for students to explore, understand and discover themselves. With “body” as the theme, this programme offers a series involving contemporary dance training and activities for students to start thinking from their daily lives regarding the power of their bodies to unleash the potential within, to achieve body-mind harmony through establishing a dialogue between them, build self-worth and reposition their self-image.

World famous classic dramas allow students to widen their horizons and enrich their basic knowledge for cultural development. However, the downside is that such classics are rather remote from student’s everyday lives and cultural experiences. It could be a good idea to let students start learning from their own experiences, discover the comic nature of life, and perform on stage with their creativity.

This programme introduces the format and category of comedy by referring to comedy classics. It spans, for instance, the entire system from “high comedy” to “low comedy” and, most importantly, the philosophy behind the spirit of comedy. It will also explain the psychological mechanism of “laughing”, and the application and significance of comedy in real life.

According to Prospects Theatre’s concept of “from text to stage”, the final segment of stage production is essential. During the final production, students can experience the charisma of theatre, whilst developing their team spirit, which is beneficial to their growth. All participating schools will enjoy three chances to perform, including an in-campus show, a community performance, and the final performance.

Participating Schools (in order of appearance)
15.7.2016 (Fri) 7:30pm
Hong Chi Morninghill School, Tuen Mun
S.K.H. Good Shepherd Primary School
Tak Oi Secondary School

16.7.2016 (Sat) 7:30pm
Hong Chi Winifred Mary Cheung Morninghope School
HHCKLA Buddhist Ma Kam Chan Memorial English Secondary School
Chan Shu Kui Memorial School
King’s College

Feng Xiong Zhi, a book by famous Hong Kong writer Xi Xi, tells short stories about history and historic figures, with a key theme of “bear”. By doing so, the book stimulates imagination and interests young readers. By reading this book, students can realise that literary works are not necessarily inaccessible. This book cultivates imagination and positive attitude. It is highly recommended for students of primary and special schools.

Theatre Ronin aims to join hands with participating schools to create an image for the “bear”. The instructor will then select from the book some stories featuring Chinese culture, for script writing and editing. Creative theatrical performing skills will also be taught, for realistically performing the story on stage.

Participating Schools (in order of appearance)
C.C.C. Mongkok Church Kai Oi School
Ka Ling School of The Precious Blood
Mary Rose School
Lok Sin Tong Yeung Chung Ming Primary School
Yan Chai Hospital Ho Sik Nam Primary School

Primary schools will be learning A Christmas Carol and secondary schools will be learning Treasure Island.

Primary Schools – A Christmas Carol
Ebenezer Scrooge is a miserly old man who believes that Christmas is just an excuse for people to miss work and for idle people to expect handouts. He doesn’t believe in all of the good cheer and charity that the season promotes, and the makes sure everyone knows it.

On Christmas Eve, Scrooge is visited by the Ghost of Christmas Past, a small, elderly figure. The Ghost shows Scrooge scenes from the past that trace Scrooge’s development from a young boy, lonely but happy, to a young man with the first traces of greed.

Then, the Ghost of Christmas Present arrives and shows him several current scenes of Christmas joy and charity at the Cratchit household. The Ghost informs Scrooge that Cratchit’s young son, Tiny Tim, will die because his family can’t afford treatments a cause of the meagre salary.

The silent, black-dressed Ghost of Christmas Yet To Come replaces the other ones. He shows Scrooge several scenes of people discussing someone’s death; he finally discovers that he is the one who has died and whose death has only pleased people.

Scrooge awakes on Christmas morning a new man. He becomes jolly, charitable and friendly with everybody.

Secondary Schools – Treasure Island
When Jim Hawkins opens Billy Bones’ sea chest his life changes forever. He finds a treasure map marking the spot where the famous pirate, Captain Flint has buried his loot.

Squire Trelawney and Doctor Livesey decide to go and find the treasure and invite Jim to come along. The Squire buys a boat, the Hispaniola, and on the way to the Treasure Island, Jim meets many strange and dangerous characters, including the ship’s cook, Long John Silver.

On the island, Jim runs into Ben Gunn who has been marooned there for many years. With the help of Ben, Jim bravely defeats the pirates with Squire Trelawney and his men. They find Flint’s treasure and sail home triumphant!

Adapted from Robert Louis Stevenson’s classic novel, this play will take you on an exciting, action-packed nautical adventure.

9.7.2016 (Sat) 7:30pm
Pui Ling School of the Precious Blood
St. Antonius Primary School
St. Joan of Arc Secondary School
Aberdeen Technical School

10.7.2016 (Sun) 2:30pm
The Evangelical Lutheran Church of Hong Kong Wo Che Lutheran School
Hong Kong Student Aid Society Primary School
St. Paul’s Secondary School
Fung Kai Liu Man Shek Tong Secondary School