Our Educational Mission
The Starlight Children’s Theatre of Las Cruces’ primary goal is educating children in an environment in which they can feel safe and secure. We concentrate on developing in our cast and crew: literacy; a love of musical theatre literature; an understanding of history, geography, and culture; artistic skills; and a sense of community.
Literacy
We perform adaptations of the time-honored classics of musical theatre. As children learn the rich texts of these works, they internalize complex sentence structures that they carry with them beyond the workshop. The experience not only introduces children to fine literature, but also promotes higher-order thinking skills.
Musical Theatre Literature
Learning the
Gilbert and Sullivan and Broadway classics promotes literacy as the children build a repertoire of famous
works that they will remember for the rest of their lives. They
feel part of a larger community as they participate in shows that
people all over the world have also performed.
Years from now, they
will see a production advertised on a marquee and say, “I was in that
show!”
History, Geography, and Culture
We teach children the historical, geographical, and social contexts of the musicals they perform. Social customs of the shows we perform often differ from our own. Our young people learn to understand different cultures, thereby broadening their understanding of the world around them.Artistic skills
While participating in the Starlight Children's Theatre, children develop self-confidence as they learn more about music, diction, vocal projection, timing, and movement—skills that will help them throughout their lives.
Community
Theatre is, by nature, a collaborative work. Children involved in the SCT develop a sense of community as they work collaboratively with other children and adults. They also learn the art of diplomacy as they help each other.
We invite families to participate in the theatre experience. Parents, grandparents, older siblings, and friends are encouraged to help during rehearsals and with all of the other needs of the theatre: costumes, sets, props, publicity, printed matter, etc. We find that families are strengthened as they work together toward a common goal, and communities are strengthened as families join together in that goal.