Kids can take free Broadway theater classes from home

Disney’s The Lion King Experience: At Home is a free immersive arts education program that uses the “Lion King” musical as a means of introducing students to various aspects of theater-making. Ordinarily, this collection of materials is reserved for schools, but since the pandemic kept families at home, the creators of the material thought it would be a good idea to open access for anyone.

There are two programs available for children. The “KIDS” edition is geared toward kids ages 8 to 11. The other curriculum, known as the JR curriculum, is for students ages 12 to 15. Both programs incorporate more than a dozen lessons that integrate rehearsal and performance footage from “The Lion King” musical, as well as lessons in African culture, musical instruments, theater skills and more.

Another blockbuster Broadway musical also has an at-home program for young musical theater fans. Lin-Manuel Miranda helped create EduHam at Home, a comprehensive video course that inspires students to research the history of the show and the craft behind it, and to create their own versions of scenes from the Tony Award-winning musical.

With seven full scenes from the production, viewers can get an up-close look at cast performances, as well as student performances inspired by “Hamilton” and the American Revolutionary War period.

So log on to your computers and get ready for some great performances on your home stage!