Introduction
Dear Educator,
As you make plans for your students to attend an upcoming presentation of the Arts for Youth program at the Lancaster Performing Arts Center, we invite you to prepare your students by using this guide to assure that from beginning to end-- their experience is both memorable and educationally enriching. The material in this guide is for you, the teacher, and will assist you in preparing your students before the day of the event, and extend the educational value beyond the walls of the theatre when the show is over. We provide activity and/or discussion ideas, and other resources that will help to prepare your students to better understand and enjoy what they are about to see, and to help them connect what they see on stage to their studies. We also encourage you to discuss important aspects of the artistic experience, including audience and theatre etiquette.
We hope that your students find their imagination comes alive as lights shine, curtains open, and applause rings through the Lancaster Performing Arts Center. As importantly, we hope that this Curriculum Guide helps you to bring the arts alive in your classroom!
Thank you for joining with us to make a difference in the lives of our Antelope Valley youth.
Bobbi Keay Arts for Youth Program Specialist Lancaster Performing Arts Center, City of Lancaster
What’s Inside
Introduction ...... 2
PRE-PERFORMANCE
Overview of the California Content Standards for Public Schools ...... 3 Theatre Etiquette ...... 4 About the Show……………………...... 5 What’s Important to Know?...... 6
POST-PERFORMANCE
Snow White coloring page ………………………………………………………………………………………..………………………………… 9 Activities ...... 10 Resources ...... 11
PRE-PERFORMANCE
Overview of the California Content Standards for Public Schools
Applicable California Content Standards Samples
Our Arts for Youth program is aligned with the California Content Standards for K-12 education.
Curriculum connections: English and Literature, Visual Arts, Music, Theater, and Dance.
Language Arts - Literature Kindergarten: Reading 3.1 Distinguish fantasy from realistic text. 3.3 Identify characters, settings, and important events.
Grade 2: Listening and Speaking - Organization and Delivery of Oral Communication 1.5 Organize presentations to maintain a clear focus. 1.7 Recount experiences in a logical sequence. 1.8 Retell stories, including characters, setting, and plot. 1.9 Report on a topic with supportive facts and details.
Visual and Performing Arts - Theatre Grade 5: Creative Expression - Development of Theatrical Skills 2.1 Participate in improvisational activities to explore complex ideas and universal themes in literature and life.
Grade 5: Connections, Relationships, Applications – Connections and Applications 5.1 Use theatrical skills to dramatize events and concepts from other curriculum areas, such as reenacting the signing of the Declaration of Independence in history social science.
Grade 5: Connecting and Applying What Is Learned in Theatre, Film/Video, and Electronic Media to Other Art Forms and Subject Areas and to Careers - Careers and Career-Related Skills 5.2 Identify the roles and responsibilities of performing and technical artists in theatre, film, television, and electronic media.
The Content standards are adopted by the California State Board of Education. For more information, visit: http://www.lpac.org/arts-for-youth.cfm
Theatre Etiquette
• Please arrive on time. Plan for possible travel and parking delays; arrive a minimum of 30 minutes prior to show time. • Students: Leave recording devices of any kind at home or in your backpack at school. Video or audio recording and photography, including camera phones, are often prohibited by law and may disrupt the performance. They are not permitted and are considered very rude to the performers and to those around you. • Teachers: Turn off or silence all personal electronics. Beeps, clicks, tones, buzzes and light pollution emanated by personal electronics such as watches, Bluetooth devices, cell phones, etc. interrupt the performance and spoil the theatre experience. •Observe the instructions of the ushers. The ushers are present to offer assistance, ensure rules are observed and provide guidance in the case of an emergency. Please show them consideration. You will be asked to exit to the right of the theatre at the end of the performance. •Be Respectful. While entering and exiting the theatre: Please enter quietly. Once seated: Do not talk. Keep your feet on the ground and put your hands in your lap or fold your arms. •Abstain from eating or drinking inside the theatre. Crackling wrappers and beverage containers in the auditorium are unwelcome. Food, candy, gum and drinks should never be brought inside the theatre. •Avoid talking, waving and shouting during the performance. Laughing and applauding are encouraged at appropriate times. Shouting to actors/friends is disrespectful to others. Save personal conversation for after the show. If you must speak, please whisper very quietly. •Please avoid exiting the auditorium during the performance. Teachers, please arrive early enough to escort students to the restroom prior to the start of the show. If you must leave during the show, please wait for an appropriate break in the performance. •Do not get onto the stage or place items on the edge of the stage. To ensure the safety and security of performers and audiences, this behavior is strictly prohibited unless expressly permitted by a performer or staff member. •Dispose of garbage in proper receptacles. Help preserve a pleasant environment by depositing all debris in appropriate receptacles. •Extend common courtesy and respect to your fellow audience members. Civility creates a comfortable and welcoming theatre experience for all. •Bring very small children only to age-appropriate performances. Small children easily become restless at programs intended for older children, and may cause distractions.
About the Show
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, presented by Missoula Children’s Theatre
Show Synopsis A young princess named Show White finds herself in peril when her step-mother, Queen Bella, is told by her Magic Mirror that the princess is fairer than she! Aided by her two Henchmen and a band of evil Bats, the Queen plots to get rid of Snow White. Snow White escapes from Queen Bella and from the Black Forest Creatures with help from Witless the Woodsman, and finds a home with the Seven Dwarfs. When Queen Bella learns of Snow White’s whereabouts, she attempts to poison Snow White. But, Queen Bella’s evil plans are thwarted when Snow White’s fearless Forest Friends, her father King Backwards, the Seven Dwarfs and the Prince come to her rescue. This MCT original adaptation of the classic fairytale will come alive through talented youth from the Antelope Valley. Auditions for this production will be held on Monday, April 1, 2013. For more information, please visit our website at www.LPAC.org.
ABOUT Missoula Children’s Theatre The Missoula Children's Theatre (MCT), the nation’s largest touring children’s theatre, has been touring extensively for 40 years now from Montana to Japan, and will visit nearly 1,200 communities this year with up to 47 teams of Tour Actor/Directors. A tour team arrives in a given town with a set, lights, costumes, props and make-up, everything it takes to put on a play...except the cast. The team holds an open audition and casts 50-60 local students, grades K-12, to perform in the production. You will be amazed by what they have accomplished! All MCT shows are original adaptations of classic children’s stories and fairytales . . . a twist on the classic stories that you know and love. Enrichment workshops presented by the Tour Actor/Directors are also available (for more information, visit: http://lpac.org/page.php?id=6). Creativity, social skills, goal achievement, communication skills and self-esteem are all characteristics that are attained through the participation in this unique, educational project. MCT's mission is the development of life-skills in children through participation in the performing arts. For more information regarding the Missoula Children's Theatre, please contact us: www.mctinc.org
History of Snow White Snow White (in German: Schneewittchen) is the title character of a fairy tale known from many countries in Europe, the best known version being the German one collected by the Brothers Grimm. Although the most famous version of the tale today, Disney's classic animated film, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, has existed in many versions for hundreds of years.
The Brothers Grimm collected the tale from two sisters--Jeannette and Amalie Hassenpflug--who lived in the town of Cassel. However, the tale was well known before the Grimm’s collection and appeared with little variation from Ireland to Asia Minor to Central Africa. Except for one Portuguese tale which appeared in Brazil, the tale did not apparently travel verbally to the Americas.
Walt Disney based his film on the Grimm's version of the tale which features elements such as the magic mirror and the seven dwarfs, who were first given individual names in Disney's film Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937). Disney actually resurrected some of the more gruesome aspects of the tale which had been edited out in previous versions intended for children, especially the queen's demand that Snow White's heart be delivered to her as proof of the child's death. This version of Snow White also appears at the Walt Disney Parks and Resorts as a meet-able character, and is part of the Disney Princesses franchise.
What’s Important to Know?
One of the Original Stories of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
The definitive edition of the Grimm's Kinder - und Hausmärchen (Berlin 1857), tale number 53, is the basis for the English translation below by D. L. Ashliman.
Once upon a time, as a queen sits sewing at her window, she pricks her finger on her needle and a drop of blood falls on the snow that had fallen on her ebony window frame. As she looks at the blood on the snow, she says to herself, "Oh, how I wish that I had a daughter that had skin white as snow, lips red as blood, and hair black as ebony.” Soon after that, the queen gives birth to a baby girl who has skin white as snow, lips red as blood, and hair black as ebony. They name her Princess Snow White. As soon as the child is born, the queen dies.
Soon after, the king takes a new wife, who is beautiful but very vain. The queen possesses a magical mirror that answers any question, to whom she often asks: "Mirror, mirror on the wall, who in the land is fairest of all?" to which the mirror always replies "You, my queen, are fairest of all." But when Snow White reaches the age of seven, she becomes as beautiful as the day, and when the queen asks her mirror, it responds: "Queen, you are full fair, 'tis true, but Snow White is fairer than you." Though in another version, the mirror simply replies: "Snow White is the fairest of them all."
The queen becomes jealous, and orders a huntsman to take Snow White into the woods to be killed. She demands that the huntsman return with Snow White's heart as proof of her killing. The huntsman takes Snow White into the forest, but after raising his knife to stab her, he finds himself unable to kill her. Instead, he lets her go, telling her to flee and hide, and brings the queen the heart of a young deer, which is then prepared by the cook and eaten by the queen.
In the forest, Snow White discovers a tiny cottage belonging to seven dwarfs, where she rests. The dwarfs take pity on her, saying "If you will keep house for us, and cook, make beds, wash, sew, and knit, and keep everything clean and orderly, then you can stay with us, and you shall have everything that you want." They warn her to take care and let no one in when they are away delving in the mountains. Meanwhile, the Queen asks her mirror once again "Who's the fairest of them all?", and is horrified to learn that Snow White is not only alive and well and living with the dwarfs, but is still the fairest of them all.
Three times the Queen disguises herself and visits the dwarfs' cottage while they are away during the day, trying to kill Snow White. First, disguised as a peddler, the Queen offers colorful stay-laces. She laces Snow White up so tight that she faints, causing the Queen to leave her for dead. However, Snow White is revived by the dwarfs when they loosen the laces. Next, the Queen dresses as a different old woman and brushes Snow White's hair with a poisoned comb. Snow White again collapses, but again is saved by the dwarfs. Finally, the Queen makes a poisoned apple, and in the disguise of a farmer's wife, offers it to Snow White. When she is hesitant to accept it, the Queen cuts the apple in half, eats the white part and gives the poisoned red part to Snow White. She eats the apple eagerly and immediately falls into a deep stupor. When the dwarfs find her, they cannot revive her, and they place her in a glass coffin, assuming that she is dead.
Time passes, and a prince traveling through the land sees Snow White. He strides to her coffin. The prince is enchanted by her beauty and instantly falls in love with her. He begs the dwarfs to let him have the coffin. The prince's servants carry the coffin away. While doing so, they stumble on some bushes and the movement causes the piece of poisoned apple to dislodge from Snow White's throat, awakening her. The prince then declares his love for her and soon a wedding is planned.
The vain Queen, still believing that Snow White is dead, once again asks her mirror who is the fairest in the land, and yet again the mirror disappoints her by responding that "You, my queen, are fair; it is true. But the young queen is a thousand times fairer than you." Not knowing that this new queen was indeed her stepdaughter, she arrives at the wedding, and her heart fills with the deepest of dread when she realizes the truth.
As punishment for her wicked ways, a pair of heated iron shoes are brought forth with tongs and placed before the Queen. She is then forced to step into the iron shoes and dance until she falls down dead.
What’s Important to Know?, continued
Dramatic adaptations: Stage adaptations of the book have also been created. One notable adaptation is a musical which opened on Broadway in 1991 at the St. James Theatre and ran for 709 performances. The production was nominated for seven Tony Awards, winning Best Book of a Musical and Best Featured Actress in a Musical (Daisy Eagan as Mary, at eleven years old is the youngest girl ever to win a Tony. Frankie Michaels is the youngest person to ever win a Tony at age ten for his performance in the Broadway musical Mame in 1966). In March 2013, a new operatic adaptation by composer Nolan Gasser and librettist Carey Harrison will premiere in a production commissioned and produced by San Francisco Opera, in collaboration with Cal Performances.
Analysis of The story of Snow White The story of Snow White may have been intertwined with those of some historical figures. Scholars have uncovered parallels between the legendary Snow White and Margarete von Waldeck (1533-1554). Like Snow White, Margarete was a strikingly attractive young woman. Like Snow White she had a problematic relationship with her stepmother. She grew up in the mining town of Waldeck where small children known as dwarfs worked in the mines. At 16, Margarete moved to Brussels. There, she attracted the romantic interest of several nobles, including Phillip II of Spain. Phillip II hoped to marry her because she was beautiful, but she became ill as a result of poisoning. Ruthless politics were a part of medieval court, where marriage to a powerful personage was often viewed as a way for a clan to gain allies to the detriment of rivals. Margarete died at the age of 21. The handwriting of her will, written shortly before her death, shows evidence of tremor. The perpetrator was never exposed but it could not have been her stepmother, who was already dead at the time. The poignant tale of a beautiful young woman whose life was cut short may have captured the popular imagination and provided inspiration for the folktale.
Easy Snow White Cryptogram: Unscramble the words by placing one letter on each line. Then use the numbered lines to complete the answer to the riddle at the end of the sheet.
OWSN ______DCO ______1 4 3 AFWRD ______TIHEW ______5 7 8 PPAYH ______ZNEEYS ______6 2 UEENQ ______9
RIDDLE: What story do these words describe? ______1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 What’s Important to Know?, continued
SUGGESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION
Definitions Rendition: version of a musical, theatrical or literature piece; an interpretation or performance of a piece of music or drama Abridged: to shorten something; to shorten a text, e.g. by cutting or summarizing it Contrary: conflicting; not at all in agreement with something; opposite.
Grades K-8 1. Have students put on short, abridged skits of Snow White. They could bring in props and costume pieces from home. 2. Have the students write a rhyming poem about… (the characters in the play, the woods, the bats…) 3. Create a mural that reflects a WOODS theme, or the show. Display it in your classroom. Be creative! 4. Decorate the classroom walls with thematic creations from each student. 5. Have a “dress-up” day where students come dressed as a character from the story. 6. Snow White originated in Germany. It has several adaptations. Read and talk about stories from cultures around the world. 7. Read and discuss the original story or different cultural versions as well as different stage or animated versions (as listed above). Contrast and compare these with the Missoula Children’s Theatre adaptation. 8. Have an essay contest to write a new ending or twist to the Disney© version of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. 9. Do you think that the scenery and costumes helped you to figure out where the story was taking place and who the characters were? Why or Why Not? Grades 5-8 1. Have a discussion about humans and the destructive powers of jealousy, selfish power, and the possible negative effects of exclusive leadership and nobility of kings and queens. 2. Narrative Form and The Story Behind the Phrase “ONCE UPON A TIME” "Once upon a time" is a stock phrase that has been used in some form since at least 1380 (according to the Oxford English Dictionary) in storytelling in the English language, and seems to have become a widely accepted convention for opening oral narratives by around 1600. These stories often then end with "... and they all lived happily ever after", or, originally, "happily until their deaths." These are examples of the narrative form, and occur most frequently in the narratives produced by children aged between 6 and 8. It is particularly apparent in fairytales for younger children, where it is almost always the opening line of a tale. It was commonly used in the original translations of the stories of Charles Perrault as a translation for the French il était une fois and of Hans Christian Andersen, or the Brothers Grimm as a translation for the German es war einmal (literally "it was once").
Discuss the phrase “Once upon a time”, and writing in the Narrative form. Narrative form refers to an expository (descriptive) writing approach that discloses details of an act, event or phenomenon. It tells a story meant to lead the reader to an important conclusion or meaningful realization or life lesson. The narration discloses a specific viewpoint, contains vivid details that support the story and typically expresses first or third person perspective.
Practice and discuss writing in this form.
SNOW WHITE COLORING PAGE
POST-PERFORMANCE
Activities
Simple Snow White Math
1. 1 Prince 2. 1 Wicked Queen 3. 1 canary + 1 Snow White + 1 poisoned apple + 2 bluebirds = ______happy people = ______kinds of trouble = ______birds
4. 1 Bashful 5. 4 deer 6. 4 Trees 1 Sleepy + 5 bunny rabbits + 5 Shadows 1 Sneezy = friends of Snow White = scary images in the forest 1 Happy 1 Dopey 1 Doc + 1 Grumpy = Dwarfs
7. 1 huntsman 8. 1 Cinderella - 0 hearts 1 Sleeping Beauty = ______Huntsman 1 Rapunzel + 1 Little Red Riding Hood = ______young ladies in fairy tales
9. 1 beautiful dress 10. 7 dwarfs 1 pretty pair of Pointe shoes 1 Snow White 1 tutu + 1 Prince + 1 tiara = ______happy people at the end of the story = _____ things Snow White gets to wear
(Courtesy of Antelope Valley Ballet)
Study guide created by: Lancaster Performing Arts Center Staff
Other Resources: surlalunefairytales.com/sevendwa rfs/history.html pitt.edu/~dash/type0709.html scils.rutgers.edu/professional- development/childlit/snowwhite.h tml phatrips.co.uk/snow-white.asp pitt.edu/~dash/grimm.html (The Brothers Grimm Home Page) http://www.ehow.com wikipedia.org www.mctinc.org