Are They Ready for the Stage?

I remember, as a new choir teacher, the day of our first concert. I was so excited about how good they sounded in class!

And, then, we lined up. Or tried to. It was a total disaster. Altos, Sopranos, and Baritones got all mixed up. The tall girl in the back row ended up beside one of the smallest singers in the choir.

As we made our way from warm up to the performance venue, the rumblings of the kids' voices matched the rumblings in the pit of my stomach.

Entering the venue and arranging ourselves on the risers? Ok. Not horrible, because we practiced that in class.

But, I forgot ALL THE OTHER THINGS that go into getting the students ONTO the stage, their actual behavior on stage, how to accept applause, how to handle squealing microphones, how to ignore crying babies and latecomers, and how to bow and accept applause.

The singing was fine.

The rest was not.

And, I learned my lesson: I have to teach what I want to see on stage - and before/after the stage.

It's so easy to be super-focused on the music, the dynamics, the message, the blend..... and forget that we have to get on and off the stage without falling apart.

PLUS, I have found that AUDIENCES don't know how to behave at Choir concerts! The amount of talking, late arrivals, phones ringing, and wrappers opening....

So, I created some resources to help my students learn what works and what sets them up for success.

I start by sharing a slideshow for the Performance Etiquette for Performers. Then, I'll check for understanding with a multiple choice worksheet. Next is a slideshow for etiquette for the Audience! And, I send the worksheet for audience members home with them to see how their families do with the answers. Grab the BUNDLE of slides and worksheets HERE.

And, finally, I'll share a Gallery Walk with scenarios . This creates an opportunity for higher level thinking, which is what we need from our performers when the unexpected happens during a performance.

And, you can grab all of it for 25% off on Dec 1 and Dec 2 in my store! with this code: CYBER25.

As my gift to you, click below to download the Performance Etiquette Worksheet for the Audience.

So, this is a friendly reminder - for all of us - to teach what we want to see on stage. Breathe deep. Envision a successful outcome, and back it up to see where to start.

You've got this!