Greater Essex and Hudson County Elementary School Students Present Disney Musicals in Schools

Children from five New Jersey public elementary schools were given the extraordinary opportunity to perform on the spectacular concert hall stage of the New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC) on Monday, Feb. 13 as part of the Disney Musicals in Schools Student Share Celebration.

For the second year, Disney Theatrical Group awarded NJPAC a grant to participate in the program. The culminating performance will be kicked off by WABC-TV's ABC7 Eyewitness News anchorman Ken Rosato and presented before an audience of fellow students, family members and friends in 2,800-seat Prudential Hall.

Major Attaway, the newest Genie in Broadway's Aladdin, hosted the event.

The participating schools were B.R.I.C.K. Peshine Academy, Oliver Street Schooland Rafael Hernandez School of Performing Arts (all in Newark), Colin Powell Elementary School (Union City), and Forest Street School (Orange). More than 150 students in grades 3 to 5 joined in this free after-school program.

During the 17-week musical theater residency, NJPAC teaching artists assisted schools in producing a Disney musical while creating a sustainable theater program with the schools' educators. Performance rights, educational support materials and guidance from the teaching artists were provided at no cost to the schools.

Disney musicals performed wereThe Lion King KIDS, Aladdin KIDS and The Jungle Book KIDS.

Disney Musicals in Schools helps to keep the arts in schools and utilizes the unique world of musical theater to build positive relationships among students, faculty, staff, parents and the community. Students work in teams to develop and restore self-confidence and strengthen communication and collaboration skills, all while learning and enjoying the process of creating a musical theater production.

"Disney Musicals in Schools at NJPAC enables students to develop critical thinking skills, problem-solving proficiency, and ensemble-building techniques, while having just plain fun producing a show. We also watched our young performers grow in assuredness and sociability," said Alison Scott-Williams, NJPAC's Vice President of Arts Education.

Disney Musicals in Schools was launched in response to Disney Theatrical Group'sconcern that students in urban public schools were not afforded equitable access to the arts. After successfully offering the program in New York City schools, Disney Theatrical Group began partnering with organizations in other communities around the United States.

Disney KIDS musicals, created in partnership with Music Theater International (MTI), are about 30 minutes in length and have been adapted from such classic Disney films as 101 Dalmatians, Aladdin, The Aristocats, Cinderella, The Jungle Book, The Lion King,Sleeping Beauty, and Winnie the Pooh.

About Disney Theatrical Group
DISNEY THEATRICAL GROUP (DTG) operates under the direction of Thomas Schumacher and is among the world's most successful commercial theatre enterprises, bringing live entertainment events to a global annual audience of more than 19 million people in more than 50 countries. Under the Disney Theatrical Productions banner, the group produces and licenses Broadway musicals around the world, including Beauty and the Beast, The Lion King, Elton John & Tim Rice's Aida, TARZAN®, Mary Poppins, a co-production with Cameron Mackintosh, The Little Mermaid, Peter and the Starcatcher,Newsies, and Aladdin. Frozen, based on the Academy Award®-winning film, is slated to open on Broadway in 2018. Other successful stage musical ventures have included the Olivier-nominated London hit Shakespeare in Love, stage productions of Disney's High School Musical, Der Glöckner Von Notre Dame in Berlin, and King David in concert. DTP has collaborated with the country's leading regional theatres to develop new stage titles including The Jungle Book and The Hunchback of Notre Dame.

Disney Theatrical Group also delivers live shows globally through its license to FeLD Entertainment, producer of Disney on Ice and Disney Live! For over 30 years, Disney on Ice and Disney Live! have brought beloved Disney stories and characters annually to over 12 million guests in nearly 50 countries worldwide, through productions such asMarvel Universe Live! and Frozen, the most well attended and highest grossing Disney on Ice production to date. In addition, DTG licenses musical titles for local, school and community theatre productions through Music Theatre International, including The Lion King Experience, a unique holistic arts education program wherein accredited elementary and middle schools produce condensed, age-appropriate JR. and KIDS adaptations ofThe Lion King.

About Arts Education at NJPAC
NJPAC's Arts Education offerings reach more than 75,000 students and families through live performances, in-school residency programs and arts training classes. These programs bring the joy of dance, music, theater, and poetry directly to the classroom. Through innovative residencies, Teaching Artists create stimulating performing arts experiences that engage students' imaginations and build self-confidence through positive self-expression. Our residencies help students learn to work together and develop their creative independence.

In addition to NJPAC's innovative In-School Programs, the Arts Center's comprehensive Arts Education Department offers an Arts Training Program that helps students at every level learn the artistic and technical skills they need to study acting, dance, instrumental music, vocal music, and musical theater. NJPAC also presents a SchoolTimeperformance series, which introduces students and their families to a world of entertainment and culture. NJPAC's Arts Education programs feature professional artists from a wide variety of traditions and performances of music, dance, storytelling, puppetry, and more. To learn more about Arts Education at NJPAC, please visit www.njpac.org/arts-education

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