G?donya Anita!

Try the Music Theatre International site of Broadway junior http://www.broadwayjr.com/default.asp

As for the dance & movement! Why not? Give it a go & see what happens!

A musical will always get the punters & performers in anyway.

At least with Broadway Junior they supply the rehearsal music & show CD, along with a heap of support material, including set, costume, lighting choreography & Directors notes/advice. All at a reduced rate, for schools, over a period of time rather than a fee per performance.

Chookas Anita

Look at "The Taffeta's"

I hate to burst your bubble, but unless you have a lot of funding, a musical is VERY costly! Royalties for a musical usually run upwards of $1,000 - $2,000 PER PERFORMANCE! You cannot perform a  show without paying royalties.

When you are an inexperienced director, it is not wise to attempt to do a musical as your first show. You will be dealing with a lot of scheduling (choreography, music rehearsals, blocking, etc.) You will also be dealing with multiple sets, and unless you have a built in set designer, this will be very hard, not to mention costly.

Here is a list of people you will need to do a musical:

Choreographer (depending on students is RISKY! If they don't know what they are doing, they can put a show WAY behind schedule and frustrate actors into quitting.)

Musical Director/Accompanist

Band or orchestra (you can also get "canned" music on a CD or tape)

Set designer/ builder

Lighting (for lighting designers, you will need someone fearless who can get up on 10-15 ft. ladders or lifts and adjust the lights).

Sound designer

Lighting and sound board operators

Stage Manager

Costume designer

Make-up designer

Backstage tech crew

Publicity

Assistant Director

Advisor (since this is your first show, this would be wise!)

Tons of DEDICATED friends who will back you up and support you!!

You will also be dealing with homework schedules, work, after school activities, etc. It's also not very easy directing your peers. The only way teachers can do this is that they have the ability to grade the student to keep them in line. Some kids are also very immature.

It costs a lot of money to do a show, not to mention a musical. The total cost of a musical can cost thousands of dollars. A straight play would be your best bet, as it would cost only a fraction of what a musical would cost.

Here are some books that will help you:

FULL HOUSE by George E. Charter

CREATE YOUR OWN STAGE PRODUCTION COMPANY by Gill Davis

THE ART OF DIRECTION by William Ball

You can also go to Samuel French and look up other books that will help you!

I know all this from directing a show when I was in high school in 1998. I have been in theater for 17 years. I directed in college and have also staged 2 other EXTERMELY successful productions with my own theater company a few years ago. I am currently in my early 20s and while I don't want to discourage you, I do want you to realize that producing and directing quality theater is not an easy, nor inexpensive undertaking. It is extremely time intensive and if you are not careful, it can throw your grades right off track. Be VERY cautious and realize what you are getting into.

Good luck!

Patrick

Patrick's right and wrong. Putting on a musical IS more complicated that putting on a straight show. But if you look at Patrick's resource list you see that the additional people required for a musical are exactly who you'd expect - the choreographer, the music director and the musicians. Don't be discouraged. Also, keep in mind that royalties are charged as a percentage of gross sales (though there is usually some minimum royalty per performance).

As to the show: I think the first musical any director should put on is The Fantasticks. It's a lovely show with a small cast (8) and a tiny (3-piece) orchestra. Even the production numbers don't have to be choreographed in a very dancy way - they can mostly be acted. And the parents will love it.

Here are some other suggestions:

You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown - great show (I just did two runs of this show as Schroeder), but more difficult than most people give it credit for.

Snoopy - similar, but not as good

Godspell - a classic low-budget, low maintenance show

and you can always do a revue, which is usually pretty easy to bring together.

Good luck!