(continued)

First and foremost we want to remove the mistrust some of you have for the musical theatre examination (and indeed genre!) Some of you may profess a dislike for theatre musicals, in much the same way that some of you may loathe Pinter or Restoration Comedy. We are all different and that is wonderful but one of the things we need to do, and are keen to do is to remove any of the old-fashioned feeling that Musical Theatre is somehow a second-class citizen in the theatre world, and finally lay to rest any condescension towards the Musical as an art form, as has been the case in some theatre circles. Of course some musicals are dire - and so are some plays. A well-crafted musical can stir the soul as much as any other form of live theatre.

Not every teacher will find that they want to, or will be comfortable, teaching this syllabus, any more than every one of you is happy or comfortable teaching Public Speaking, or English as a Second Language, or Mime. Every one of you has your own strengths, likes and dislikes. Hopefully today will dispel some of the terror of the uncharted waters.

In much the same way, not every student will be suited to this syllabus. Obviously, tuning is the first essential (Judi Bench notwithstanding as we will mention later!!). If a child is tone deaf or just cannot even remotely carry a tune, these examinations are not for them, and they will need steering to other disciplines. (Sometimes, inaccurate tuning can be a matter of lack of true concentration, and listening intently will, with practice, help to train the ear.) If you as the teacher cannot tell if someone sings sharp or flat, and cannot recognise if someone is out of tune or time with a piece of music, then this syllabus is not for you either - or at least not without an assistant to check that side of the performance. Perhaps a one-to-one discussion or even a class with a respected singing teacher will reassure you and give you that last bit of confidence to give your students in-depth tuition.

We are certainly not attempting to lure all of you into teaching this syllabus, but from what you have told us, many of you are attracted to it but are unsure where to start, or worry that it crosses over into Dancing School territory, or isn't sufficiently structured or theory-led.

This is no student's easy option involving sketching their way through a couple of songs any more than a reading exam is an easy option because it doesn't involve learning by heart or involve reams of theory; nor is it merely a chance for the young student to reproduce, karaoke-style, their favourite 'High School Musical' repertoire or lazily copy the intonation of the pop favourite of the day. Make no mistake, this is not the song-and-dance section at a Festival. Whilst these are fun and entertaining, this is not what these examinations are about. This syllabus is designed to help train musical theatre ACTORS.

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